President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday held a private meeting with Zenith Bank founder, Jim Ovia, and the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Dr. Akintunde Sawyerr, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

The two officials arrived at the State House at about 5:15 p.m. Jim Ovia was dressed in a black suit with a red tie.

The Presidency did not disclose the purpose of the meeting as of the time of filing this report.

Ovia has served as Chairman of the NELFUND Board since April 2024. He was appointed by President Tinubu after the signing of the Access to Higher Education Act, which established Nigeria’s interest-free student loan scheme.

Dr. Sawyerr, who was also appointed in April 2024, is the pioneer Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NELFUND. He has overseen the implementation of the student loan programme.

NELFUND says it has disbursed over ₦303 billion to more than 1.64 million students across over 300 higher institutions nationwide.

Although Ovia retired earlier this year as Founder and Group Chairman of Zenith Bank, he remains active in the education sector through James Hope University and the Jim Ovia Foundation.

As of press time, the outcome of the meeting had not been disclosed, with further details expected from the Presidency.