The Nigerian Education Loan Fund has introduced a new token system to stop double payment of school fees and eliminate refund complications for students under the federal student loan scheme.

Managing Director of NELFUND Akintunde Sawyerr disclosed this during an interview on ARISE NEWS saying the agency is moving from direct payment to schools to a system where students control when their fees are paid.

According to Sawyerr the problem started because President Bola Tinubu directed that the scheme be rolled out in the middle of an academic session. Many students had already paid their fees to meet registration and examination deadlines before NELFUND later paid the same fees directly to their institutions leading to duplicate payments.

Under the new system students will receive a secure digital token on their mobile phones equivalent to their tuition. When they go to the school bursary they will push a button to pay directly. The token can only be used for tuition and cannot be diverted to other uses.

Sawyerr said once the upgrade is fully implemented NELFUND will no longer transfer tuition directly to tertiary institutions. Students will continue to receive upkeep allowances directly.

He said NELFUND deliberately refused to pay tuition loans into students personal bank accounts to prevent diversion of funds.

The reform comes as NELFUND investigates about 34 tertiary institutions over alleged failure to refund students after receiving double payments. The agency said institutions that received duplicate payments are responsible for refunding students and that EFCC ICPC NANS and internal auditors are involved in the probe.

Since its launch in 2024 NELFUND says it has disbursed over 206 billion naira to more than 1.16 million beneficiaries.