EDUCATION TAX WILL PROVIDE FUNDS FOR NIGERIAN STUDENT LOAN -FIRS CHAIRMAN
The Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Zaccheus Adedeji has revealed that the Nigerian Student Loan Scheme of the federal government will be funded through the Education Tax Fund, under the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS.
Adedeji made the revelation on Monday while briefing State House Correspondents at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
In his company was the Executive Secretary of Student Loan Board, Dr Akintunde Sawyerr.
Adedeji explained that the federal government was using the Education Tax to fund the Student Loan Scheme in order to be accountable to the taxpayers.
President Bola Tinubu, had within his first two weeks in office, signed into law the Student Loan Bill.
It was in fulfilment of the promise made in his acceptance speech after emerging as President-elect.
The purpose of the education loan, to be granted to Nigerian students, was to ensure that university lecturers do not go on strike anymore.
This will allow the students to complete their programmes within the stipulated duration.
In his remarks, the Executive Secretary of Student Loan Board, Dr Akintunde Sawyerr said the process for applying for the loan would be transparent.
He assured that every action would be undertaken on an App that has been specifically designed for the purpose.
“This law seeks to bridge the gap between the desire to study and the capacity to go further.
“It seeks to bridge that gap that is created by lack of finance, lack of funding.”
“I want to say to you that this has been done with a lot of thought. So in application and in applying for this loan, there is zero human intervention.
“In other words, there is an app. The applicant will go on to a portal, they will engage with that app.
“They will have to put in certain pieces of information which made them eligible, that is their JAMB number, and of course the tie-in to their date of birth.
“Further pieces of information include things like their national identity number, NIN, which confirms that they are Nigerians.
“This loan scheme is being paid for by Nigerian tax payers. So it’s for Nigerians and the NIN helps verify and qualify them as such.
“Their BVN is needed for financial inclusion because this scheme will at some point be able to empower students.
“So we need to know they have bank accounts. We need to know where their accounts are, to be able to access those accounts.
“It will also have their matric number, admission number so that we can firmly establish which institution they are going.
“Because one of the key elements of this is that once we’ve received applications and those applications are approved, the fees or the tuition requirements, in terms of finance, will be transferred directly to the institution.”
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