Nigeria: No, Tetfund Is Not Giving N30,000 Grants to Nigerians. Ignore Scam Facebook Post

4 August 2023
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Muktar Balogun

IN SHORT: The Tertiary Education Trust Fund is not giving out grants of N30,000 to Nigerians. This Facebook post is a scam.

A post on Facebook claims that the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (Tetfund) is giving out grants to Nigerians.

The post, dated 12 June 2023, reads: "Apply today and become a beneficiary of TetFund Grant. This is available only for Nigerians."

The post includes a link to a website which says that Tetfund is giving out N30,000 to each beneficiary.

The Nigerian government established Tetfund in 2011 to distribute, manage, and oversee education tax to state-owned tertiary institutions.

But is Tetfund giving out grants directly to Nigerians? We checked.

Tetfund in the news

Tetfund is an intervention organisation that was established to offer supplemental assistance to all public higher education institutions.

There are several media reports about the organisation funding research projects and contributing towards the maintenance of infrastructure and equipment in the education sector.

Africa Check found no report of the government institution giving out grants of N30,000 directly to individuals.

Signs of a scam

The link in the Facebook post takes you to a page that requires you to answer some general questions. These include whether you're a Nigerian citizen or not, and what you'll use the money for.

Suspiciously, regardless of your answers, you will be taken to the next step, and ultimately told that you qualify for the "grant".

The website also has what appears to be a screenshot of the comments section of a Facebook post. This shows comments from users who say they've received the funds and urge others to apply.

If you complete all the steps, you are taken to a blog titled "Scholarships Infopedia".

This points to the Facebook post being a scam. It uses a tactic known as engagement bait. By liking, commenting or sharing the post, users increase its reach, but there are no "grants" awarded.

By increasing the reach of the Facebook post, scammers are able to draw visitors to the website.

Africa Check debunked a similar claim in 2021. Those posts also claimed that Tetfund was giving out N30,000 to Nigerian students. This turned out to be false and a scam.

To help protect yourself against online scams, read our guide to Facebook scams and how to spot them.

Read the original story, with links and other resources.
Africa Check is a non-partisan organisation which promotes accuracy in public debate and in the media. Twitter @AfricaCheck and www.africacheck.org

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