NELFund extends loan scheme to vocational skill centres

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFund) has announced the extension of its loan programme to include vocational skills centres across the country, with Enugu State among the first beneficiaries.

Iyal Mustapha, executive director of operations at NELFund, disclosed this during a sensitisation campaign in Enugu on Friday.

The campaign featured visits to several institutions, including the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu College of Education Technical, and the MSME Clinics Fashion and Garment Hub.

Mustapha said the initiative is aimed at supporting technical and vocational training through interest-free loans covering tuition, transport-related institutional charges, and upkeep.

Beneficiaries will also receive working tools upon completion of their training.

“We are going to open our portal for people to apply for vocational skills, and we are going to have these centres in place to say, if you apply from Enugu, this is where to go,” he said.

Mustapha added that while the upkeep allowance is still being finalised, the training cost will be paid based on each centre’s proposal.

He said the programme has already been extended to over 10 states, with Enugu described as one of the most prepared.

“What I see is very positive. Enugu will be one of the first states we’re going to start with,” he said.

Arinze Chilo-Offiah, special adviser to the governor of Enugu on digital economy and SME development and director-general of the Enugu SME Centre, said the state is ready to receive all the support NELFund is offering.

He noted that the MSME Clinics Fashion and Garment Hub can train hundreds at once, with over 150 industrial sewing machines and world-class monogramming equipment.

“We can sit at any given point in time, 300 plus or closer to 500. This is just the fashion hub,” he said.

Patricia Nwanneka, acting registrar of IMT, described the loan programme as timely, urging students to take advantage of it.

“Now that they have gotten more knowledge, we will go on to educate more of them, inculcating them into applying for the loan,” she said.