By Fredrick Nwabufo
Suleiman sits in the examination hall. His palms are sweaty, and beads of despair are dropping on his lap. He has not paid his fees and is scraping by on odd jobs. It is the crucial second-semester examination. Suleiman faces a major challenge to his dream of getting a higher education: funding. But his determination is greater than his fear.
In his 200 level in 2024, word came to him about the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND); he did not hesitate; he put his foot on the pedal, applied and got funding for tuition and upkeep. Today, Suleiman’s dream lives. Not aborted. In his immortal words, he says: “NELFUND helped me cross the finish line. It was a lifeline.”
We now have close to two million students like Suleiman to whom NELFUND has given a lifeline, a new passport to prosperity, and a reason to dream again; to believe again, and redouble their faith in the possibilities of our nation.
The challenge of funding higher education is a serious concern worldwide. In the US, 60 per cent of students who drop out of college cite financial strain, and in the 2023/2024 academic session alone, more than 10 million students received various forms of financial aid.
NELFUND is a historical novelty. It is a programme that the young beneficiaries of today will talk about and pass down to their children, just like our parents regaled us with tales about a time in Nigeria when higher education was at its peak; when hostels were roomy, and a smorgasbord of full chicken and milk was served expressly at school cafeterias.
To address certain political contortions, NELFUND is a zero-interest facility open to all Nigerian students in tertiary institutions. It is only due for repayment two years after the completion of the NYSC. Critical programmes like NELFUND should not be fodder for populist politics. The programme’s essence must not be lost or minimised. It is principally to offer an opportunity for higher education and a better life for any Nigerian student, as well as to enrich the productive workforce and expand access to jobs and economic opportunities.
From yesterday’s challenges, Nigeria is transitioning today, undergirded by economic policy shifts—such as fiscal realignments and fuel subsidy removal—toward long-term stabilisation, infrastructure returns, expanded federal revenue distributions to states, job creation, and emerging microeconomic gains. Without eliminating the residual challenges, the gains from macroeconomic stability are already reaching critical segments of the population.
Today, states can pay workers’ salaries, a departure from the past when 27 states could not meet this obligation; there is an improvement in wages and income; there is CREDICORP, which is supporting workers to buy essential goods and assets; there is education financing, as well as direct financial grants to low-income households and small businesses, among others.
Essentially, the Tinubu administration has kept faith with the core pillars of its original manifesto. It has honoured foundational commitments, translating policy blueprints into tangible infrastructure and structural reforms. What it said it would do, it has done.
It has not been an easy road to tread, really, but it has been far from a Golgotha experience. Our economy has reached a sufficient recovery and is already on a stronger growth trajectory.
Our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 4.43% (year-on-year) in real terms in the second quarter of 2026, higher than the 4.23% recorded in the second quarter of 2025, driven by improvements in the oil, manufacturing, agricultural, and services sectors, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The NBS also reported inflation falling to 15.43% in July 2026 from 15.91%.
Days ago, Moody’s revised Nigeria’s outlook to positive and affirmed its B3 rating, citing stronger external buffers and sustained reform momentum. Global index provider FTSE Russell had also confirmed that Nigeria’s capital market would be reclassified from “Unclassified” to “Frontier Market” status, effective from the opening of trading on Monday, September 21, 2026, after nearly three years of exclusion.
Months ago, Nigeria’s stock market emerged as the world’s best-performing equity market in dollar terms, eclipsing South Korea, as investor confidence grew amid an improving macroeconomic outlook and ongoing economic reforms.
Today, our foreign reserves are over $53 billion, the highest in nearly two decades. In June, Nigeria was ranked as the best-performing African economy in the 2026 World Competitiveness Ranking released by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD).
In the past three years, the hard work of scaffolding and foundation laying has been accomplished; the reforms have been sown, and now we are harvesting prosperity. With Renewed Hope Agenda 2, we will deliver today while building for tomorrow.
*Nwabufo is the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Engagement
