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NELFUND: The Renewed Hope Engine Propelling Nigeria’s Youth into Tomorrow

Published

2 days ago

November 28, 2025

By Dayo Israel, National Youth Leader, APC

As the National Youth Leader of the All Progressives Congress, I have spent most of my tenure fighting for a Nigeria where every young person, regardless of their ward or local government, family income, or circumstance, can chase dreams without the chains of financial despair.

Today, that fight feels like victory, thanks to the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND). Launched as a cornerstone of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, this initiative isn’t just a policy tweak; it’s a revolution. And under the steady, visionary hand of Managing Director Akintunde Sawyerr, NELFUND has transformed from a bold promise into a roaring engine of opportunity, disbursing over ₦116 billion to more than 396,000 students and shattering barriers for over a million applicants.

Let’s be clear: NELFUND was always destined to be a game-changer. Signed into law by President Tinubu on April 3, 2024, it repealed the outdated 2023 Student Loan Act, replacing it with a modern, inclusive framework that covers tuition, upkeep allowances, and even vocational training—ensuring no Nigerian youth is left on the sidelines of progress.

But what elevates it from groundbreaking to generational? Leadership. Enter Akintunde Sawyerr, the diplomat-turned-executioner whose career reads like a blueprint for results-driven governance. From co-founding the Agricultural Fresh Produce Growers and Exporters Association of Nigeria (AFGEAN) in 2012—backed by icons like former President Olusegun Obasanjo and Dr. Akinwumi Adesina—to steering global logistics at DHL across 21 countries, Sawyerr brings a rare alchemy: strategic foresight fused with unyielding accountability.

As NELFUND’s pioneer MD, he’s turned a fledgling fund into a finely tuned machine, processing over 1 million applications since May 2024 and disbursing ₦116 billion—₦61.33 billion in institutional fees and ₦46.35 billion in upkeep—to students in 231 tertiary institutions nationwide. That’s not bureaucracy; that’s brilliance.

Sawyerr’s touch is everywhere in NELFUND’s ascent. Since the portal’s launch, he’s overseen a digital ecosystem that’s as transparent as it is efficient—seamless verification, BVN-linked tracking, and real-time dashboards that have quashed misinformation and built trust. In just 18 months, the fund has empowered 396,252 students with interest-free loans, many first-generation learners who might otherwise have dropped out.

Sensitization drives in places like Ekiti and Ogun have spiked applications — 12,000 in a single day in one instance, while expansions to vocational centers in Enugu pilot the next wave of skills-based funding. And amid challenges like data mismatches and fee hikes, Sawyerr’s team has iterated relentlessly: aligning disbursements with academic calendars, resuming backlogged upkeep payments for over 3,600 students, and even probing institutional compliance to safeguard every kobo. This isn’t management; it’s mastery—a man who doesn’t just lead but launches futures.

Yet, none of this happens in a vacuum. President Tinubu’s alliance with trailblazers like Sawyerr is the secret sauce securing Nigeria’s tomorrow. The President’s Renewed Hope Agenda isn’t rhetoric; it’s resources—₦100 billion seed capital channeled into a system that prioritizes equity over elitism. Together, they’ve forged a partnership where vision meets velocity: Tinubu’s bold repeal of barriers meets Sawyerr’s boots-on-the-ground execution, turning abstract policy into tangible triumphs. It’s a synergy that’s non-discriminatory by design—Christians, Muslims, every tribe and tongue united in access—fostering national cohesion through classrooms, not courtrooms.

As Sawyerr himself notes, this is “visionary leadership” in action, where the President’s political will ignites reforms that ripple across generations.

Why does this matter to us, Nigeria’s youth? Because NELFUND isn’t handing out handouts—it’s handing out horizons. In a country where 53% of us grapple with unemployment, these loans aren’t just funds; they’re fuel for innovation, entrepreneurship, and endurance.

Picture it: A first-generation polytechnic student in Maiduguri, once sidelined by fees, now graduates debt-free (repayments start two years post-NYSC, employer-deducted for ease) and launches a tech startup. Or a vocational trainee in Enugu, equipped with skills funding, revolutionizing local agriculture. This is quality education that endures—not fleeting certificates, but lifelong launchpads. Sawyerr’s focus on human-centered design ensures loans cover not just books, but bread—upkeep stipends of ₦20,000 monthly keeping hunger at bay so minds can soar. Under his watch, NELFUND has debunked doubts, refuted fraud claims, and delivered results that scream sustainability: Over ₦99.5 billion to 510,000 students by September, with 228 institutions on board.

As youth leaders, we see NELFUND for what it is: A covenant with our future. President Tinubu and MD Sawyerr aren’t just allies; they’re architects of an educated, empowered Nigeria—one where poverty’s grip loosens with every approved application, and innovation blooms from every funded desk. This isn’t charity; it’s an investment in the 70 million of us who will lead tomorrow.

We’ve crossed one million applications not because of luck, but leadership—a duo that’s turning “access denied” into “future unlocked.”

To President Tinubu: Thank you for daring to dream big and backing it with action.

To Akintunde Sawyerr: You’re the executor we needed, proving that one steady hand can steady a nation.

And to every Nigerian youth: Apply. Graduate. Conquer.

Because with NELFUND, your generation isn’t just surviving—it’s thriving, enduring, and eternal.

The Renewed Hope isn’t a slogan; it’s our story, now written in scholarships and success. Let’s keep turning the page.

Dayo Israel is the National Youth Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

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CrediCorp: Tinubu’s Campaign Dream, Uzoma Nwagba’s Execution – Unlocking Prosperity for a New Nigeria

Published

3 days ago

November 27, 2025

The Gleamer

By Dayo Israel, National Youth Leader, All Progressives Congress

In the heat of the 2023 campaign, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu stood before throngs of hopeful Nigerians and made a promise that cut through the noise: “We will build a Nigeria where credit is not a luxury for the elite, but a ladder for every citizen to climb out of poverty and into prosperity.” It was more than rhetoric—it was a blueprint for economic justice, a vow to democratize finance in a nation where 40% of us scrape by below the poverty line, and inequality widens like a chasm.

Fast-forward to 2025, and that promise isn’t just kept; it’s exploding into reality through the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CrediCorp).

Under the transformative leadership of Managing Director/CEO Engineer Uzoma Nwagba, CrediCorp isn’t revolutionizing credit—it’s rewriting the rules of possibility, turning campaign cheers into concrete change that will echo across generations.

Let’s call it what it is: a game-changer. Established as a Federal Government Development Finance Institution in 2024, CrediCorp is the engine of President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, operationalized with laser focus and unyielding execution. In barely 18 months, it has disbursed over ₦30 billion in affordable loans to 153,000 Nigerians—civil servants, artisans, retirees, and yes, our vibrant youth—slashing interest rates by up to 20% and reaching 180,000 lives with credit for everything from solar panels to small business inventory.

This isn’t incremental progress; it’s a seismic shift. Where once credit meant predatory lenders charging 40-60% interest, CrediCorp delivers responsible, low-cost access—up to ₦2 million interest-free in pilots—that empowers without ensnaring. And at the helm? Uzoma Nwagba, the engineer-economist whose quiet brilliance is turning a bold vision into a national movement.

Uzoma Nwagba isn’t just leading CrediCorp—he’s supercharging it. A Harvard MBA graduate with a First Class Honors degree from Howard University, Nwagba’s career is a masterclass in blending Wall Street precision with Silicon Valley innovation. He kicked off as an Analyst at Goldman Sachs in New York, honing the analytical edge that would later dissect markets for the masses. Then, as Product Manager at Microsoft in Redmond, he earned a coveted Gold Star Award—one of the company’s highest honors—for masterfully leading a vast mobile technology team, building enterprise and mobile software tailored for emerging markets like Nigeria, Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.

Returning home armed with his Harvard MBA, Nwagba dove into private equity at African Capital Alliance, driving transformative investments in financial services and healthcare that scaled impact across the continent. But his true genius shone as Chief Operating Officer of Nigeria’s Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP), where he co-managed the world’s largest microcredit scheme—disbursing and overseeing two million loans to underbanked Nigerians through a tech-driven powerhouse that advanced financial inclusion like never before in Africa.

Under his watch at CrediCorp, he’s launched game-changing initiatives like the ₦100 billion Car Ownership Scheme, making vehicles accessible for the working class and boosting local auto assembly; the Pension-Backed Loan Programme, dignifying retirees with low-interest access for healthcare and home upgrades; and the Inventory Finance Scheme, injecting ₦100,000 loans into 10,000 market women’s hands across 224 markets.

His crown jewel? YouthCred, Nigeria’s largest youth credit intervention, fulfilling President Tinubu’s Democracy Day pledge to empower 400,000 young Nigerians—including NYSC corps members—with tailored loans for startups, devices, and skills training. With 65% of beneficiaries as first-time borrowers—many young hustlers historically shut out—Nwagba’s data-driven dashboards and fraud-proof portals have built trust where skepticism once ruled.

No wonder CrediCorp snagged “Consumer Credit Access Company of the Year” at the 2025 BusinessDay BAFI Awards—Nwagba didn’t just meet the bar; he raised it sky-high.

But let’s not forget the architect: President Tinubu. His campaign wasn’t pie-in-the-sky; it was prescient. He saw a Nigeria where credit fuels consumption, sparks industry, and slays poverty’s dragons—echoing his vow for “affordable credit as a right, not a privilege.” By repealing barriers and injecting ₦100 billion seed capital, the President handed Nwagba the keys to a vault of potential. Their alliance? Pure alchemy.

Tinubu’s political fire meets Nwagba’s operational steel, forging a system that doesn’t just lend money—it lends hope. As Nwagba puts it, this is “empowerment, not exploitation,” a direct line from campaign trail to kitchen tables.
Why does CrediCorp matter so profoundly? In a nation where 89 million souls battle multidimensional poverty and inequality festers like an open wound, credit is the great equalizer.

It breaks cycles: A market woman in Lagos restocks with an inventory loan, hires two apprentices, and lifts her family from subsistence to surplus. A retiree in Kano upgrades her home with pension-backed credit, freeing resources for her grandchildren’s education. A corps member in Enugu launches a solar-powered agrotech venture via YouthCred, creating jobs in a rural economy starved for innovation. By targeting the unbanked—artisans, small traders, youth—CrediCorp injects liquidity into underserved communities, stimulates demand for local goods (think CNG conversions under the CALM Fund), and multiplies economic velocity.

The math is merciless: Nigeria needs ₦180 trillion in circulating credit to match South Africa’s economy; CrediCorp’s wholesale guarantees to lenders are the spark to ignite it. Poverty shrinks when families afford solar panels (cutting energy costs 50%), vehicles (unlocking mobility and markets), and tools (boosting productivity). Inequality fades as first-timers—65% of users—build credit scores that open doors to homes, businesses, and brighter futures. This isn’t trickle-down; it’s flood-up—prosperity rising from the grassroots, enduring because it’s equitable and sustainable.

For everyday Nigerians, the benefits are as immediate as they are profound.

Let’s Break it down: Affordability—rates discounted 20%, turning usurious debt into dignified financing. Accessibility—digital portals and partnerships with 25+ institutions mean no more gatekeepers; apply at credicorp.ng and get verified via BVN in days. Responsibility—mandatory financial literacy modules (like in YouthCred) ensure users aren’t just borrowers, but builders of wealth.

A young entrepreneur in Abuja buys inventory on credit, scales her shop, employs neighbors—poverty’s grip loosens. A civil servant in Port Harcourt converts to CNG, saves on fuel, invests in her child’s tuition—inequality’s scales tip toward balance. And for youth like us? It’s rocket fuel: 400,000 empowered by Q2 2025, turning service-year side hustles into empires.

As the APC National Youth Wing, we’re not just observers—we’re overjoyed architects. Seeing young guns like Uzoma Nwagba in government isn’t tokenism; it’s triumph. At 36, with a resume forged in global powerhouses, he’s proof that when merit meets mandate, magic happens. We hype him because he hypes us: Prioritizing youth in CrediCorp’s DNA, from NYSC tie-ups to innovation challenges, shows a leader who gets it—our generation isn’t the problem; we’re the propulsion. And with President Tinubu’s unwavering backing—allocating fresh funds, championing expansions— this duo is dismantling barriers we thought were permanent.

Nigerians, here’s your call to action: Don’t spectate—seize it. Head to credicorp.ng/apply today. Whether you’re a trader eyeing inventory, a retiree needing home fixes, or a corper with a big idea, CrediCorp is your unlock code. Build that credit score; it’s your invisible asset, your ticket to bigger loans, better lives. Repay responsibly—two years post-use for some—and watch doors fly open.

President Tinubu, your promise wasn’t puffery; it was prophecy. Uzoma Nwagba, you’re the executor extraordinaire, proving young Nigerians in power choose impact over inertia. Together, you’re not just fighting poverty and inequality—you’re forging a Nigeria where every citizen credits their success to a system that believed in them first. This is Renewed Hope, reloaded. Our future? Secured, soaring, and supremely ours.

Dayo Israel is the National Youth Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

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