Education ministry urged to continue with student loan scheme
View(s):Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa this week urged the Education Ministry to ensure the continuation of the zero-interest student loan scheme for students who successfully completed the GCE A/L to follow degree courses in non-State universities.
He said this loan was offered since 2016, with six batches of students benefiting from the zero-interest loan scheme which gives up to Rs 800,000 per selected student.
“In 2017, students enrolled in 26 degree courses in six higher education institutes. However, the loan scheme for 2021-2022, seventh batch, has not been gazetted yet and has caused inconvenience for students expecting to apply for this loan scheme,” he said.
The Opposition Leader pointed out that the loan scheme was an essential component in building a knowledge-based economy.
In response to Mr Premadasa’s statement, Education Minister Susil Premjayantha said the Education Ministry is in the process of making this loan scheme available for students.
“The scheme proposed by President Ranil Wickremesinghe when he was Prime Minister continued from 2017. Even when interest rates went up from 9 to 23 percent, we managed to make the loan available for the previous six batches,” he said.
The Minister said that, previously, the loan scheme was only given through the Bank of Ceylon. The Education Ministry held discussions with the National Savings Bank and the People’s Bank two weeks ago.
“The meeting with the banks and Treasury officials was a success. With all three banks now involved in the student loan scheme, we will be able to gazette it in the coming weeks,” the Minister assured. (NF)
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