NNPA Newswire
(NNPA) – 8B Education Investments, which built the first platform to connect high-potential African students to world-class colleges and universities, and the tools they need to level up their applications and financial options, is a Nelnet Bank announced a partnership with and raised $30 million. of loans over 3 years.
The partnership is made possible by 8B’s use of what it calls an innovative credit enhancement to insure against losses incurred by Nelnet during the term of the loan program, and is a partnership between a US-based bank and a school of America. It will be the first loan program for African students enrolled in .
Officials say the $30 million commitment is part of a broader $111.6 million pledge made last month at the Clinton Global Initiative to facilitate access to global universities for African students. is.
8B Founder and CEO Dr Lydiah Kemunto Bosire said in a statement: “Historically, African students have had limited access to global universities, with admission largely dependent on scholarship availability. It was taking
“The world is underinvesting in African talent. As a result, hundreds of thousands of African students receive offers from world-class universities each year and are unable to enroll, largely due to lack of funding.
“We are excited that our partnership with Nelnet Bank will help fund this underprivileged group of talented students and help create an example of how to accelerate Africa’s access to the global innovation ecosystem. “
According to a news release, 8B estimates that the 500,000 African students enrolled in global universities account for 30% of the students offered by such universities.
As a result, Africans are underrepresented in the world’s universities and, in turn, underrepresented in the global innovation ecosystem.
Nelnet Bank CEO Andrea Moss said:
“Together, we can provide opportunities for one of the fastest growing student bases in the world and one that has been overlooked for too long. I am excited to work with my colleagues at Investments on this.”
As the first fintech solution focused on African students, 8B said it is committed to enabling African talent to make an impact in the world. 8B provides tools to help African students identify the best global universities, upgrade their applications, access affordable funding, and connect with career support to find employment.
“Although there are few affordable student loan options for African learners, there is a wide range of options for international students. excellence,” said Debra Fine, founding chairman of 8B Education Investments and chairman of Fine Capital Partners.
“I have spent 35 years evaluating business opportunities. This partnership is one of the most extraordinary I have seen. “This partnership is a great example of how private capital can invest in Africa’s future.”
8B and Nelnet Bank announced their partnership as part of a CGI meeting. The CGI Meeting convenes global and emerging leaders to take action on the world’s most pressing challenges.
8B said it has brought together several partners within the CGI community to support Africa’s access to the global innovation ecosystem.
In this release, 8B’s CGI efforts, including students attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), will promote African access to the global innovation ecosystem and promote diversity and inclusion in global universities and workplaces. said to promote sexuality.
It will also build a scalable market-based model for funding world-class human capital development in low-income countries.
The total partnership value is $111.6 million and will roll out over the next three years.
“These partnerships will transform the lives of over 1,400 future innovators across the continent and reach over 2 million African higher education students through affordable student loans.” Officials wrote in a news release.
