President Bola Tinubu announced on Monday that the Student Loan Scheme, which he greenlit on June 12, 2023, is scheduled to kick off in January 2024.
In his address at the 29th annual Nigeria Economic Summit held at Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, he also pledged to put an end to recurring industrial action by academic staff unions in tertiary institutions.
“By January 2024, the new Students Loan Programme must commence. To the future of our children and students, we’re saying no more strikes,” declared Tinubu during the event, organized by the non-profit think-tank, the Nigerian Economic Summit Group.
Tinubu further elucidated on his government’s strategies for economic stability through collaboration with all stakeholders, notably the private sector. He emphasized the urgency of implementing a sustainable credit scheme as a vital component of an effective anti-corruption campaign.
“There must be consumer credit, and the scheme will have to come into effect as soon as possible. I thank my team and my colleagues for building this program; develop it now.
“We cannot talk about anti-corruption when you have to look for cash to buy a car when there’s no mortgage for homeownership,” he asserted.
These statements by Tinubu followed his recent approval of a partial waiver of the “No Work, No Pay” Order, which was imposed on striking members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities.
This strike, which began on February 14, 2022, concluded on October 17, 2022, and the waiver now enables previously striking ASUU members to receive four months of withheld salary accruals out of the eight months of the industrial action.
| Punch Newspaper
