(Jamaica Observer) – NEARLY 2,000 beneficiaries of student loans enrolled in schools across five parishes, and just under 5,000 who are now repaying debts to the Students’ Loan Bureau (SLB), will get some relief under the entity’s debt reset initiative.
Speaking at the weekly Hurricane Melissa recovery post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House in St Andrew on Wednesday, executive director of the SLB Nickeisha Walsh said effective next week, individuals in St Elizabeth, Westmoreland, Hanover, St James and Trelawny will be able to benefit.
“Currently, we have 1,948 students that are enrolled in institutions across these parishes; we have also identified 4,450 repayment customers who reside within these parishes. For the students in schools we are going to give them a $60,000 grant in aid to support their post-Melissa efforts and for those in repayment we are giving them a three-month deferral on their account from November 2025 to January 2026,” Walsh disclosed.
She said students outside those five parishes who were impacted by the hurricane will also get assistance, but on a case-by-case basis.
