…Says Two-Year Loan Repayment Period Too Short

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has called on the members of the House of Representatives to amend the Student Loan Act such that access to loans would become less stringent for interested students.

The union added that the criteria for access to the loan according to the Act were too stringent, and the 2-year time frame for repayment should be reviewed to 4 – 5 years as that was too short.

The NANS President, Usman Barambu, made the call while speaking at the legislative summit on student loans and access to higher education, organized by the ad-hoc committee on Thursday in Abuja.

He asked that the list of guarantors needed to access the loans be looked into, as most students would be unable to meet that requirement.

Barambu also urged the House to include students on the board as well as representatives of Polytechnics and Colleges of Education, as opposed to only members of the National Universities Commission (NUC).

“Student loan is for us and there is no student representation on the board. The board only captured NUC sidelining the polytechnic and colleges of education, they should all be included for fairness and equity.

“Also, the method of payment should be looked into as most students are not able to find their ground financially two years after graduation, it should be revised to 4 to 5 years. The Act also gives no room for forgiveness in cases of death, especially for security officers, that should also be looked into,” he said.