Nigeria, May 24 -- Exactly one year after it launched, the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) said it has disbursed over N56 billion in student loans to 550,000 students in tertiary institutions across the country.

In a statement marking the one-year anniversary of the student loan scheme, NELFUND spokesperson, Oseyemi Oluwatuyi, said the disbursed amount includes school fees and upkeep for students who applied.

The Fund rolled out its first application process for students on 24 May last year.

The statement explained that in the past year, the board has received applications from 600,000 students and approved over 550,000 of them.

It added that NELFUND has disbursed N56.85 billion to cover tuition and provide upkeep allowances fo...