By Vincent Egunyanga, David Lawani, Cajetan Mmuta, and Anthony Otaru
Barely months after the launch of the Federal Government’s Nigeria Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) was hailed as a revolutionary step to make tertiary education accessible to indigent students, the initiative is already tottering.
Some universities, both federal and state-owned, have increased their tuition fees by staggering margins, effectively undermining the essence of the policy meant to relieve financial burdens, not multiply them.
Recent data obtained from a report titled “Framework to Mitigate the Impact of Increased Institutional Charges on the Fund’s Operations” reveals disturbing trends.
At the University of Ilesa in Osun State, Nursing fees have risen by 55%, from ₦825,000 to ₦1.276 million, while Law now costs ₦1.526 million, up from ₦1.276 million.
At Ekiti State University, Medicine and Surgery fees climbed by 42%, from ₦797,000 to ₦1.132 million.
Edo University, Iyamho, in Edo State, has raised Medicine fees by ₦1 million, from ₦3.25 million to ₦4.25 million.
But these are only a few examples in what education experts now describe as a “nationwide contagion” of fee inflation.
At Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto (UDUS), a federal institution previously known for low tuition, a 400-level English student reported that his fees rose from ₦44,900 to ₦68,300, representing a 52% increase.
Similarly, Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE) recently proposed a 100%–120% hike for the 2025/2026 academic session, prompting swift rejection from its students’ union.
At Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Law students now pay ₦300,000 instead of ₦250,000—a 20% rise.
At the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), previously one of the most affordable federal universities, students have seen drastic hikes: Agriculture now costs about ₦278,888, Computer Science ₦263,388, Biochemistry ₦252,000, Medicine ₦389,000, and Pharmacy ₦406,888—all substantial jumps from prior years.
Even Northwest University (Yusuf Maitama Sule University), Kano, recently drew condemnation from the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) after implementing a 300% increase, which student leaders described as “unconscionable amid economic hardship.”
A recent NELFUND internal review confirmed the pattern: several institutions have raised fees by between 20% and 521%, especially in high-demand programmes like Medicine, Nursing, and Law.
Meanwhile, at the University of Abuja, some students who spoke with ThisNigeria expressed frustration at their inability to access the loan, even as costs soar.
“Many of us can’t even get through the loan process, yet tuition keeps going up,” lamented Chioma Azike, a 300-level student. “Female students are suffering. Some even sell their eggs to raise school fees. It’s that bad.”
Another student, Theresa Francis, corroborated her story, saying, “An ovary can fetch as much as ₦100,000. It’s desperate survival.”
Their plight underscores how quickly structural failures and institutional opportunism are eroding the promise of equity in education.
*Experts warn of policy sabotage, urge the government to tie loan eligibility to fee transparency
Following the development, analysts are warning that unless the government acts swiftly, the NELFUND may become a textbook case of how well-intentioned social policy is hijacked by institutional greed and policy incoherence.
Professor Agharese Osifo of Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, described the entire framework as “capitalist and mercantilist,” saying that government policies themselves have created inflationary pressures that push universities to raise fees.
“It is my candid opinion that the Federal Government is inadvertently exploiting students through macroeconomic policies that cause inflation and force universities to increase tuition,” he argued.
Osifo rejected calls for a tuition ceiling.
“There is absolutely no need for government to fix tuition caps in public universities,” he said. “These are economic entities subject to market forces within the educational space.”
He further maintained that “education, ideally, should be the responsibility of state governments and the private sector, not the federal government.”
According to him, Nigeria’s free-market orientation does not allow price control mechanisms. “We must recognise that universities operate within the same economic realities as every other sector,” he concluded.
Human rights activist and Chairman, Board of Trustees of the International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law (Intersociety), Comrade Emeka Umeagbalasi, described the situation as “a tragedy of governance.”
“We are in a country where government officials no longer understand the elementary purpose of government,” he lamented. “Government means subsidy. You subsidise to help the poor, not tax them into illiteracy.”
He said the problem lay in leadership insincerity.
“Whatever is introduced in Nigeria goes with crookedness because those in charge are not sincere,” he said. “Parents can no longer train their children, yet the government keeps watching.”
Umeagbalasi accused both federal and state governments of “exploiting their citizens through poverty, illiteracy, and systemic neglect,” adding that “when you see SUGs and university councils being controlled by politicians, you know the system is collapsing.”
He called for student activism to be revived, saying, “Students’ unions must wake up. Their silence is aiding exploitation.”
To restore sanity, Prof. Adesoji Adesugba, an adjunct professor at Yakubu Gowon University, Abuja, urged the Federal Government and NELFUND Board to compel institutions to sign a Fair-Fees Compact.
“This compact would commit universities to publish detailed annual fee schedules, keep increases within a Consumer Price Index (CPI)-linked band, and guarantee fee stability for each admitted session,” he proposed.
According to him, non-compliant institutions should face suspension from NELFUND disbursements.
“Transparency and consequences are the surest deterrents to abuse,” he emphasised.
Adesugba also proposed a Fee & Funding Oversight Panel made up of the Federal Ministry of Education, the National Universities Commission (NUC), NELFUND, and state governments.
“This body would benchmark programme-specific cost bands and vet any proposed increases above inflation. South Africa’s fee regulation model provides a tested example Nigeria can adapt,” he said.
He explained that a cap-and-index model would work better than rigid ceilings.
“Disciplines should have base caps that rise annually with inflation, ensuring predictability for parents and sustainability for universities,” he said, adding that “only institutions adhering to this framework should qualify for NELFUND payments.”
Economist and university don, Professor Sheriffdeen Tella, said the sudden surge in fees shows how Nigerians exploit government initiatives for selfish gain.
“Unfortunately, even educated Nigerians think only of how to take advantage of public finances,” he said. “Many federal institutions that were charging minimal fees before the loan rollout have now raised them sharply to grab a bigger share of the fund, as if it’s a national cake.”
Tella urged the government to order an immediate reversal.
“The Federal Government should direct all institutions to revert to the fees charged before NELFUND and refund excess collections,” he declared. “Then set tuition ceilings for different categories of institutions.”
He called for “urgent modalities” to preserve the integrity of the project, warning that “if this trend continues, NELFUND will collapse under the weight of its own contradictions.”
The President of the Conference of Non-Governmental Organisations (CONGOS), Bartholomew Okoudo, offered a pragmatic framework to curb the abuse.
“Concrete steps must include verification, transparency, and sanctions,” he said. “Tie institutional eligibility to compliance rules and deploy fast audits.”
He suggested creating a public registry of tuition charges, requiring universities to publish itemised fees and secure prior regulatory approval.
“Transparency reduces opportunistic hikes,” Okoudo explained. “Automated checks should flag abnormal increases above 30% or double the education CPI before disbursements.”
He also called for a rapid-response audit unit comprising NELFUND, ICPC, EFCC, and the NUC to investigate and recover illegal deductions.
“Student whistleblower channels must be protected,” he said. “Complaints unresolved within a fixed timeframe should trigger suspension of the offending institution.”
For genuine cost pressures, he recommended targeted support: “Where state universities face real financial constraints, TETFund or NELFUND can provide bridging grants, conditional on maintaining reasonable fees.”
Analysts say the unfolding crisis around NELFUND exposes a deeper structural malaise: poor policy coordination, weak regulatory oversight, and the absence of accountability mechanisms in Nigeria’s higher education financing framework.
From the desperate voices of students in Abuja to the warnings of economists and education experts, the consensus is clear: unless the Federal Government imposes transparency, conditional access, and a rational fee-index model, NELFUND risks becoming a monument to policy failure.
As one observer put it, the dream of democratising access to higher education “is fast turning into a nightmare of debt, despair, and disillusionment.”
*NELFUND not meant to reduce fees- Nwoye
The Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences, Nile University, Abuja, Professor May Nwoye, took a different perspective when she said the loan scheme was being misunderstood.
“The essence of NELFUND is not to reduce tuition fees,” she said. “It was designed to help indigent students who cannot afford fees due to financial hardship.”
According to her, the fund “is not meant for research or infrastructure, but purely for students who need help.”
However, Nwoye criticised the exclusion of private university students from accessing the loans, calling it discriminatory.
“In human capital development programmes, you don’t discriminate. Those in private universities also deserve support,” she noted. “Poverty does not respect whether you attend a public or private school.”
She urged policymakers to revisit the eligibility criteria, arguing that “if education is truly the bedrock of national development, access to funding should be universal, not selective.”
The Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) has called on the government to go beyond loan schemes and address the root causes of high education costs.
In a recent communiqué, the bishops argued that “educational institutions should be exempted from taxation” as part of a broader strategy to ease financial pressure.
They warned that NELFUND loans “can never solve the problem of high tuition fees” without structural reforms, citing “the rising cost of salaries, rent, electricity, transportation, and healthcare.”
They also pointed out that the monthly ₦20,000 stipend offered under the scheme “can hardly sustain a student in today’s economy.”
