Nigerian govt disburses N13 billion interest-free loans to 7,450 tertiary institution workers

The Nigerian government said it has disbursed more than N13 billion in interest-free loans to 7,450 academic and non-academic staff across 153 public tertiary institutions nationwide.

According to a statement issued on Friday by the spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of Education, Folasade Boriowo, the disbursement is part of the government’s 2025/2026 cycle of the Tertiary Institutions Staff Support Fund (TISSF).

The statement also said applications for the 2026/2027 phase of the programme will open later this month.

About TISSF

The TISSF is a federal government loan scheme for workers in Nigerian universities, polytechnics and colleges of education introduced in July 2025.

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Under the programme, the workers can access interest-free loans of up to N10 million, capped at 33.3 per cent of their gross annual salary, for purposes such as transportation, healthcare and small-scale business ventures.

When it launched last year, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) rejected the scheme, arguing that university workers were already burdened by debt and maintained that the government should instead address the poor welfare of the workers, as well as the renegotiation of the 2009 agreements between the government and the workers in the university. The negotiation with ASUU was completed in December, with a 40 per cent salary increment and some allowances.

Disbursements

The ministry said more than 42,000 applications were processed through the programme’s digital platform since disbursements began on 28 October, 2025.

It added that universities accounted for 52 per cent of beneficiaries, while colleges of education and polytechnics received 25 per cent and 23 per cent of the loans, respectively.

Female staff represented 19 per cent of beneficiaries during the cycle.

“Consequently, targeted sensitisation and outreach efforts will form a key component of the next phase of implementation,” the statement said.

According to the statement, the education minister, Tunji Alausa, described the scheme as a key component of the education reform agenda and urged eligible staff to take advantage of the next application window.

Mr Alausa described the intervention as one of the largest staff welfare programmes in Nigeria’s education sector, aimed at improving the welfare, financial wellbeing and productivity of workers in tertiary institutions.

He added that investments in infrastructure, technology, research and institutional reforms must be complemented by measures that improve staff welfare and quality of life.