UNESCO launches UK-backed education loan scheme for Nigerians

UNESCO Read and Earn Federation (UNESCO-REF), in partnership with the Police Officers’ Wives Association (POWA) and the United Kingdom Global Universities Application Portal (UAPP), has unveiled plans to launch an education loan facility aimed at supporting Nigerian students seeking higher education abroad.

The initiative was formalised yesterday in Abuja with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), marking a major step toward expanding access to international education through structured financing and streamlined application support.

Speaking at the ceremony, President of UNESCO-REF, Prince Abdulsalami Ladigbolu-Oranmiyan, said the partnership was designed to complement existing student funding mechanisms and remove financial barriers that often limit overseas study opportunities.

While noting that the Nigeria Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) primarily supports students studying within the country, he explained that the new facility targets Nigerians aspiring to attend foreign institutions.

According to him, the programme will begin with a pilot phase at police secondary schools before expanding nationwide by September.

He disclosed that the initiative has partnerships with over 250 universities globally and is open to undergraduate, master’s and doctoral candidates from both public and private schools, without language or location restrictions.

“This facility ensures that our collaboration is not only about opening doors to international university applications but also about providing the financial backbone that makes opportunities attainable.

“It is the reason for our synergy, combining the UNESCO-REF vision with UAPP global reach. This is to dismantle these barriers, democratise access, and create a holistic framework where ambition is matched with resources and dreams are matched with pathways,” Mr Ladigbolu-Oranmiyan said.

He added that UNESCO-REF would sponsor admission processes for the first 40 police secondary school students selected under the scheme, with implementation commencing immediately and payment structures handled by designated financial partners.

National President of POWA, Dr Elizabeth Egbetokun, described the partnership as a significant boost for Nigerian youth, particularly children of police officers.

UAPP’s CEO, Md Shamim, said the collaboration would provide end-to-end guidance, secure application processes and fee waivers for the first 1,000 participating students, alongside mentorship and priority processing.

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