The Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, has urged the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, NELFUND, to ensure that funds approved by the Federal Government for student loans get directly to the intended beneficiaries.
Olukoyede gave the charge in Abuja on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, at the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, between the EFCC and NELFUND at the corporate headquarters of the Commission.
The MoU is aimed at strengthening collaboration, preventing financial infractions and ensuring accountability in the management and disbursement of proceeds of crime allocated for educational support.
He described NELFUND as one of the major legacy projects of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led administration and commended its management for progress recorded in providing access to education financing.
The EFCC Chairman said the Commission’s mandate extends beyond recovery of proceeds of crime to ensuring that recovered funds are put to productive use for the benefit of Nigerians.
He disclosed that both agencies will set up a joint team tagged ‘Fraud Assessment and Control Unit’ to ensure compliance with set guidelines.
Olukoyede stressed that the partnership should focus on prevention, rather than waiting until funds are stolen.
“There are certain things you might not have addressed your mind to, because that is what we do. We could give all your attention to it. We don’t have to necessarily wait for money to be stolen before we go into action. Why can’t we provide more prevention?” he said.
He said the welfare of young people informed the EFCC’s interest in supporting NELFUND, noting that a substantial proportion of those investigated for cybercrime are young people and in some cases students.
“Whatever we recover from these proceeds of crime, why can’t we use it to also support them?” he asked.
He advised NELFUND to explore mechanisms for direct disbursement to beneficiaries, subject to verification by educational institutions, and urged the Fund to access only funds legitimately due to it and apply such resources promptly for their intended purpose.
“Let it go directly to the human beings,” Olukoyede said.
Earlier, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of NELFUND, Akintunde Sawyer, commended the EFCC for its support and preventive approach, which he said helped NELFUND establish stronger standards of transparency and accountability.
Sawyer disclosed that NELFUND had processed 1.6 million applications, with 960,000 loans approved, adding that the organisation recently upgraded its systems and launched a new portal.
He said NELFUND receives, processes and disburses loans electronically through formal banking channels without cash, with payments made directly into students’ bank accounts using NIN, JAMB registration details, matriculation numbers and BVN for verification.
“We wanted to make sure that there are no gateways, no middlemen in between… anyone who applies for this loan does not need to know anybody at NELFUND,” he said.
Sawyer said all operations are fully transparent with electronic footprints and expressed appreciation to the EFCC for its role in recovering funds used to support NELFUND’s mandate.
He said the MoU would ensure that recovered funds are not diverted after recovery but reach the intended beneficiaries.
