The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has dismissed claims that the Federal Government has suspended the payment of student upkeep allowances under the 2025/2026 Student Loan Scheme, describing a widely circulated social media notice as fake. The agency said the NELFUND upkeep allowances programme remains fully operational, urging beneficiaries and the public to ignore misleading reports circulating online.
According to NELFUND, the document, dated July 10 and falsely attributed to its Director of Strategic Communications, Mrs. Oseyemi Oluwatuyi, did not originate from the organisation.
Oluwatuyi described the publication as fabricated and advised students, parents and other stakeholders to rely solely on the agency’s verified communication channels for official information. She stressed that neither the Federal Government nor NELFUND had announced any suspension of NELFUND upkeep allowances for eligible beneficiaries.
The fake document had claimed that funds earmarked for May, June and subsequent months had not been released, suggesting that upkeep payments had been temporarily halted pending additional government allocations.
However, NELFUND dismissed the claim, stating that both tuition and upkeep disbursements are continuing in line with the Fund’s mandate to support qualified students in public tertiary institutions across Nigeria. The agency assured beneficiaries that approved payments would continue in accordance with existing guidelines.
Oluwatuyi warned that fabricated publications and AI-generated content are increasingly being used to spread false information capable of misleading the public and undermining confidence in government programmes. She urged students, educational institutions, parents and the general public to verify every update concerning the student loan scheme through NELFUND’s official communication platforms before sharing or acting on such information.
Reaffirming its commitment to accountability, the Fund assured eligible beneficiaries that the NELFUND upkeep allowances and tuition support under the Student Loan Scheme remain active. NELFUND added that it will continue implementing the programme transparently while providing verified updates through its authorised communication channels.
