Updates gathered that the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has expressed deep concern over the rising tuition fees across several tertiary institutions, warning that the continuous increment poses a serious threat to the sustainability of the student loan scheme recently introduced by the federal government.

According to findings from the Fund’s internal risk management report, many institutions have increased tuition by margins ranging between 20 and 521 percent. The affected schools include the University of Ilesha, Osun State; Ekiti State University; University of Medical Sciences (UNIMED), Ondo; Edo State University; Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Oyo State; and David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences (DUFUHS), Ebonyi State.

In some cases, the increments were most severe in professional programmes such as Medicine, Nursing, and Law. At the University of Ilesha, the Nursing fee reportedly rose from N825,000 to N1.276 million, while the Law programme increased by 20 percent to N1.526 million. Ekiti State University also raised its Medicine and Surgery fee from N797,000 to N1.132 million, and Edo State University pushed the same course from N3.25 million to N4.25 million.

At the University of Medical Sciences, Ondo, Nursing was raised from N900,000 to N2.245 million, a 149 percent jump, while Medicine and Surgery went from N1.32 million to N2.245 million. In Oyo State, LAUTECH recorded one of the steepest hikes, as the tuition for Medicine and Surgery increased from N126,000 to N782,000 — a 521 percent rise. David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences, Ebonyi State, also increased Medicine and Surgery fees from N1.03 million to N1.5 million.

In Kogi State Polytechnic, TEAM FAS REPORTS gathered that institutional charges were raised by over 1,000 percent, prompting widespread criticism from parents and student unions.

To cushion the impact of these changes, NELFUND is reportedly considering suspending loan disbursements to institutions with extreme increases pending a policy review. The Fund also plans to collaborate with the Federal Ministry of Education to establish a national tuition guideline and to publish updated fee thresholds on its official platforms.

Data obtained by Team Honorable Updates revealed that as of September 26, 2025, NELFUND had disbursed N107.6 billion to 581,878 students across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. Out of the total, N61.3 billion covered institutional fees while N46.3 billion went for upkeep allowances.