Leadership (Abuja)
5 May 2008
A banker has blamed the inability of Nigerian youths to obtain good educational background on lack of funding facilities like education loan.
Divisional director Retail Banking, BankPHB, Olu Akanmu, who made the observation in Lagos said that a lot of people are willing to study abroad but could not due to lack of financing.
He said that the bold step taken by BankPHB by introducing educational loan was due to the noticeable gap in the market as currently no bank provides such facility that is easily obtained in developed countries.
According to him, "the absence of credit facility is a major barrier to thousands of aspiring and suitably qualified Nigerians from securing admission locally and internationally".
He explained that funding has always been the major hurdle between forward-looking Nigerians and the cutting edge knowledge essential for success in our modern world, adding that It has become so much that the cycle of ignorance, mediocrity and poverty continue its spiral thus ensuring that quality minds are often times never able to go anywhere near their full potentials.
He, however, said that the scenario would soon be a thing of the past as Bank PHB has entered into partnership with the British Council to float an education finance facility that students seeking to continue their higher education pursuits in UK can tap into.
Akanmu pointed out that the BankPHB Education Loan, which will be available this month, was aimed at encouraging eligible Nigerians to study in the UK universities through a finance facility provided by the bank.
He said that qualified students will be required to open an Education Account with BankPHB and build it up to 50 per cent of the school fees as advised by the school in question.
Giving further insight into the facility, Akanmu said that persons applying for the loan could be parents or guardians, who wish to give their children quality education in UK higher institutions or students who wish to pursue higher education in the UK.
Such a student, he said will be required to have a sponsor. The sponsor shall assume the responsibilities of the borrower. "The Education loan is also for individuals who wish to pursue any undergraduate or postgraduate course in any bona fide UK universities.
The British Council is the principal source of UK education information for Nigerians," Akanmu disclosed.
The Bank PHB Education Loan tallies with the bank's focus on developing and inspiring Nigerian youths and contributing to the development of quality human capital in Nigeria.
Bank PHB which is the sponsor of the entrepreneur-inspiring Apprentice Africa currently showing in five different countries in Africa including Nigeria, has continuously become the icon for the new face of Banking in Nigeria with its various cutting edge services and initiatives.
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