The Federal Government has moved to ease financial pressure on workers in tertiary institutions with the release of N11.8bn as interest-free loans to thousands of staff across the country.
Data from the Federal Ministry of Education (FME) shows that 6,842 academic and non-academic workers have so far benefited from the scheme, which covers 141 institutions, including universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.
The intervention falls under the Tertiary Institutions Staff Support Fund (TISSF), a programme introduced in August 2025 to improve staff welfare and support career growth. The loans come with zero interest and can reach up to N10m per beneficiary, depending on eligibility.
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The initiative is part of a broader plan to stabilise the education sector and improve working conditions for staff who have long faced financial strain. To qualify, applicants must have at least five years left before retirement.
Figures from the ministry indicate strong interest in the programme. About 34,000 workers from 219 institutions have already been verified as applicants. Federal university staff make up the largest share at 59 per cent, followed by polytechnic workers at 23 per cent and colleges of education at 18 per cent.
Beyond the loan scheme, the government is also pushing other support measures. Under the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative, 240 e-tricycles have been distributed in 12 institutions to ease mobility challenges on campuses.
In addition, a digital training platform known as EduRevamp has attracted 37,000 registered users, with 18,000 teachers actively taking part in its courses. The platform offers training materials and certification aimed at improving teaching standards.
A separate School Safety Portal (SSP) has also been introduced, capturing data from over 156,000 schools nationwide to strengthen security monitoring.
Together, these measures signal a broader attempt by the government to address long-standing welfare concerns in the education sector, even as questions remain about how far the interventions can go in meeting the needs of all workers.
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