A pro-democracy group in Abia State, the Foundation for Environmental Rights, Advocacy and Development (FENRAD), has criticized the National Assembly’s Education Committees for leaving South-East universities out of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND)

A pro-democracy group in Abia State, the Foundation for Environmental Rights, Advocacy and Development (FENRAD), has criticized the National Assembly’s Education Committees for leaving South-East universities out of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND). 

In a statement issued by FENRAD’s Executive Director, Nelson Nnanna Nwafor, the group expressed concern over the lack of action from the education committees regarding the South-East's exclusion from the loan program. They lamented that only the South-East National Assembly caucus has addressed the issue, while broader intervention from the full House or the education committees could have provided national reassurance.

FENRAD recalled that during President Jonathan's administration, the Presidential Special Scholarship Scheme for Innovations and Development (PRESSID) was discontinued under President Buhari due to claims of inadequate northern representation, affecting many South-East students who were set to study abroad.

The group also noted that under Buhari's administration, a new tertiary education policy named "Education for Change; Ministerial Plan 2018-2022" was introduced, resulting in the creation of 10 specialized universities across Nigeria, none of which were located in the South-East. Although the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO) was to benefit from an upgrade, progress on this has been unclear.

FENRAD criticized the slow progress in verification processes for South-East universities and the lack of representation among the 27,000 students who have benefited from NELFUND so far. They questioned the inclusivity of the policy and urged the federal government to ensure that South-East students and universities are included in the scheme.

The Foundation highlighted that the South-East contributes to federal revenue and should, therefore, be included in federal education funding. They also urged federal lawmakers to address this issue and ensure that the South-East benefits from federal programs.