State expenditure on student loans reach MVR 189 million

As of now, State expenditure on student loans this year has reached MVR 189 million.

Statistics shared by the Finance Ministry indicate that this year, MVR 768 million will be spent from the State Budget on student loans.

Records indicate that while 10,000 students have received loans, only 10 percent consistently meets their repayment obligations.

Another 40 percent repaid the loans despite being not on schedule. However, the remaining 60 percent have failed to repay the loans.

Even at present, 1,650 students are studying abroad on student loans.

The Performance Audit Report of the Student Loan scheme show that under various schemes, MVR 1.8 billion was issued as loans to students between 2014 and 2019. The report further states that unpaid loans have reached MVR 173 million.

In May, Higher Education Minister Dr. Ali Haidar informed parliament that the ministry is exploring methods to recover payments from students who have defaulted on their loans.