Student loans in Ghana

Student loans were first introduced in Ghana in 1971, but the scheme was abandoned the following year, due to a change of government. A revised scheme was introduced in 1975, but faced problems of high rates of default. Attempts to improve recovery since 1986 have had some success, but in 1989 the Government of Ghana introduced a new student loan scheme, which is administered by the Social Security and National Insurance Trust. This article summarises the current pattern of finance of higher education, gives a brief history of student loans in Ghana and describes the new scheme, introduced in 1989.     

香港地区学生贷款:贷款机构的视角

根据政府对资本市场干预程度的不同 ,香港地区形成了三类教育贷款 ,即政府补贴性贷款、成本回收型教育贷款和盈利性教育贷款。这三类教育贷款在满足不同群体的教育需求上是互补的。香港入息教育款的成本回收率达 71 .4% ,这表明香港的教育贷款已形成了一个良好的资金发放与回收体系 ,1 %的贷款拖欠率亦表明香港已具备了完备的个人信用制度与金融网络体系     

Student loans for higher education

In recent years, economic circumstances have forced a wide range of governments to examine ways of spreading the cost of education. Introduction of loan schemes for higher education has been a particularly popular suggestion. Although schemes work well in some countries, however, in others they have worked poorly and have suffered from high default rates. The Hong Kong system, which was launched in 1969, operates efficiently. Many factors contributing to this are specific to the local situation, but other governments might find it instructive to examine the Hong Kong experience. In turn, others may also be able to teach Hong Kong some useful lessons.     

Student loans in financing higher education in India

Confronted with declining public budgets for education on the one hand, and the need for more resources on the other, many developing countries such as India, have been examining alternative methods of financing higher education. One such mechanism is student loans. A student loan programme is not a new phenomenon in India. The National Loans Scholarship Scheme has been in operation since 1963. This article critically reviews the experience of implementation of the National Loan Scholarship scheme. It examines strengths and weaknesses and problems specific to this programme in India, with a view to identifying measures for marginal improvement in the programme. The conclusion is that at present student loans make little contribution to either the efficiency or equity of higher education in India.     

Student loans repayment and recovery: international comparisons

Student loans schemes are in operation in more than seventy countries around the world. Most loans schemes benefit from sizeable built-in government subsidies and, in addition, are subject to repayment default and administrative costs that are not passed on to student borrowers. We probe two issues in this paper, for 44 loans schemes in 39 countries: how much of the original loan is an individual student required to repay (the “repayment ratio”) and what percentage of the total costs of loans schemes can the lending body expect to receive back in repayments (the “recovery ratio”)? The analysis shows considerable variation in the size of the repayment and recovery ratios across schemes. Moreover, many loans schemes exhibit sizeable built-in subsidies accruing to student borrowers—in over 40% of the schemes examined, the repayment ratio is 40% or less. Overall loans recovery is considerably lower. Policy implications of these findings are discussed together with a consideration of steps that may be taken to improve the financial outcome of loans schemes.     

Student loans for higher education in Singapore: some observations

The higher education system of Singapore is seen as crucial for the economic prosperity of the country. It is highly elitist, with fierce competition for limited places, and high private returns. In 1989 the Government announced a policy of reducing subsidies for higher education, in order to reduce the financial burden on the tax-payer, increase expenditure on other levels of education and achieve a more equitable distribution of costs. Tuition fees were increased sharply and a new student loan scheme, the Tuition Loan Scheme (TLS), was introduced. There are in addition two other loan schemes in Singapore, the Student Loan Fund (SLF), and the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Approved Education Scheme, under which parents may borrow from their CPF savings in order to finance their children's higher education, but must repay the loan. This article examines the arguments for and against student loans in Singapore, and concludes that the conditions necessary for a successful loan scheme are already in place: full employment, high private returns to higher education, and an efficient banking system and financial infrastructure. In the light of those conditions student loans seem to be an efficient and equitable form of finance for higher education in Singapore.Views do not implicate The National University of Singapore or The International Institute for Population Sciences. I am thankful to Mr Geoffrey Lau, Planning Services Unit, National University of Singapore for some suggestions and assistance. The usual disclaimers are relevant.     

Student loans in Japan: Current problems and possible solutions

The Japanese higher education sector has seen increases in tuition with stagnant household incomes in a society where family support for university students has been the norm. Student loans from the government have grown rapidly to sustain the gradual increase in university enrolments. These time-based repayment loans (TBRLs) have created financial hardship for increasing numbers of loan recipients and their families. There is some evidence that prospective students from low-income households are forgoing a university education to avoid student loan debt. The Japanese government has introduced some measures including grants and a partial income-contingent loan (ICL) scheme to help alleviate these problems.While the ICL scheme is a positive development, this paper shows that it requires further refinement and broader coverage if it is to adequately address the challenges facing higher education financing in Japan. We show that an affordable and universal ICL system could be introduced in Japan that avoids problems with the current partial income-contingent loan scheme and would help alleviate access issues for those from disadvantaged backgrounds. Importantly, the unique features of the Japanese labor market have to be carefully considered, especially the large gender wage gap for married women. By introducing dynamics into modeling graduate earnings and using carefully selected parameters, we show that it is possible to have a universal ICL which achieves a balance between access and affordable repayment with minimal long-run costs to taxpayers.     

高职院校推行国家助学贷款的现状及发展思路

国家助学贷款政策实施几年来，由于银行参加热情不高、部分院校不被重视、学校心存顾虑、社会信息失真等因素的影响，这项政策虽然在全国各地取得了不同程度的进展，但总体情况不尽如人意，贷款的地域发展不平衡，学生申贷成功的比例较低，贷款覆盖的院校结构不尽合理，特别是高职院校几乎还是空白，离政府、学生、高等学校等有关各方对这项工作的热切期望相差较远，解决的主要措施是加大政策扶持力度，完善银行存款实名制和全国统一信用体系的建设，加强学生诚信意识的培养，增加学生家长的连带责任，降低作为经营实体的银行在这项工作中的坏帐风险，增强银行信心和自觉参与意识，推动国家助学贷款工作在高职院校的实施。     

Student loans in developing countries: feasibility,experience and prospects for reform

Student loan schemes now exist in more than fifty countries, but many are not working well and critics question whether student loans are feasible in developing countries. This special issue of Higher Education compares experience of student loans and other forms of student support in selected Asian and African countries and examines the prospects for reform of student loan programmes in order to improve their effectiveness and reduce default. This introduction to the volume describes current research on student loans by the International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) and the World Bank, and draws on the conclusions of a series of Educational Forums on student loans organised by IIEP, to conclude that student loans are feasible, and can promote wider cost-sharing and help to generate additional resources for higher education, but only if loan programmes are well designed and efficiently managed. The purpose of this introduciton and the subsequent articles in the special issue is to suggest some ways of improving performance of student loans in developing countries, drawing on lessons from experience in Asia and English-speaking Africa.     

Student loans and their alternatives: improving the performance of deferred payment programs

The opportunities for increasing student contributions to the costs of higher education are many. Student loans have received much attention both in literature and in practice. While they have not always worked well, we have argued that suitably reformed, they can constitute a productive, though limited, mechanism for cost recovery. In certain countries, however, other mechanisms may be more appropriate. Indeed, the policy maker is presented with a wide menu of policy choices, though some creativity may be required in their application to particular local settings. Currently, loan programs exist in over 50 developing and industrial countries, and have been introduced most commonly to assist students to pay their living expenses.In order to improve financial effectiveness, programs should be targeted toward the most needy and able students. Hidden subsidies should be limited by charging positive real interest rates, combined with repayment plans that take account of the likely pattern of graduate earnings. Default reductions require that loan programs be managed by institutions with the capacity and financial incentives to collect - namely banks, private collection agencies, or taxation departments. Such reforms offer great potential to transform small programs into relatively efficient forms of student support.Larger programs, however, may be more difficult to manage. Some countries have considered alternatives which preserve the basic concept of paying for education from future income. The most notable is a graduate tax in which a student pays a fixed percentage of income over the entire working life, regardless of how much is repaid. Another option is national service which require students to perform socially productive work in exchange for part or all of education costs. In the presence of an effective tax system, a graduate tax could bring in significantly more revenue than traditional loan programs. Besides improved financial efficiency, income contingent payments may be more equitable since they limit the risk to poorer students. In countries with weak taxation systems, this option may not be feasible.     

当前助学贷款工作主要障碍分析及对策措施

助学贷款是我国目前教育资助的主要方式之一,本文分析了当前助学贷款工作的主要障碍及原因,提出了要大力开展生源地助学贷款,规避制度性贷款风险;加大宣传教育力度,强化学生信用意识;建立完善大学生个人信用档案;增进银校之间的理解与信任,努力确保助学贷款工作良性循环。     

国家助学贷款中大学生诚信教育探析

国家助学贷款是高校家庭经济困难学生资助政策体系主要内容,不仅直接关系家庭经济困难学生及其家庭的切身利益,而且直接关系国家人才培育和社会稳定的大局,以及教育公平和社会正义的实现。然而,大学生在国家助学贷款中的失信行为却严重地影响和困扰着国家助学贷款的正常开展。本文主要探讨了国家助学贷款中大学生诚信教育的相关因素,结合其中存在的各种问题,进行深入的探析,提出加强大学生诚信教育的相关建议。     

商业银行会计防范贷款风险的对策

商业银行必须采取有效措施防范贷款风险。从银行会计的角度考虑,在会计核算、财务分析方面以及财务管理角度实施相应的措施,是一条切实可行的防范途径。     

英国女性将花费更长的时间偿还学费贷款

英国《卫报》2008年1月2日报道,英国高等教育部长Bill Rammell称,预计在2006-2007学年进入高校的女生大约需要花费16年时间才能偿还完学费贷款,而男性只需要11年。这个预测是根据英国家庭调查所、劳动力调查提供的毕业生终生收入的数据测算得出的。     

The role of information in the take-up of student loans

We study student loan behavior in the Netherlands where (i) higher education students know little about the conditions of the government's financial aid program and (ii) take-up rates are low. In a field experiment we manipulated the amount of information students have about these conditions. The treatment has no impact on loan take-up, which is not due to students already having decided to take a loan or students not absorbing the information. We conclude that a lack of knowledge about specific policy parameters does not necessarily imply a binding information constraint.     

论国家助学贷款的可持续发展

银行和高校是国家助学贷款行为的重要主体.本文重点分析了新政策下银行和高校在国家助学贷款中的行为特征,提出了加强银校合作、促进国家助学贷款可持续发展的新思路.     

校园贷的法律问题研究

随着互联网金融的发展,大学生贷款的现象越来越普遍,一方面在一定程度上确实缓解了大学生的经济压力,另一方面,却也产生了很多负面的影响。目前,我国对校园贷的准入门槛尚未有明确的规定,缺乏相应的管理和监督,造成了很多社会极端案例的出现。文章通过对校园贷的案例作为引入,分析存在的相关问题,并提出自己的建议和措施。     

资产证券化是解决不良贷款之有效方式

我国银行体系中不良贷款问题日益严峻,深入剖析不良贷款问题的现状、分析其理论和现实根源、探索解决银行不良贷款问题的思路已成当务之急．通过证券化,银行可以提前收回现金,提升不良资产的潜在价值．在美国、意大利、日本和韩国等经济发达国家,已有大量成功先例．由于中国的不良资产证券化缺乏稳定的现金流,体现出了独特的中国特色,加上法律、会计、税收、监管等方面都缺乏配套的规定,所以,必须加强不良资产证券化的基础条件建设．     

我国开展住房反向抵押担保贷款可行性分析

住房反向抵押担保贷款是一具有以房养老功能的金融创新产品。随着我国逐渐步入老龄化社会,住房反向抵押担保贷款成为新型养老模式的热门话题。通过引入经济学中的SWOT分析方法,从优势、劣势、机会、威胁角度全面解构该制度在我国推行的可行性。在准确定位市场化运作的基础上,从老年人的角度提出了设置强制咨询、明确无追索权等鼓励措施,建议银行、保险公司等金融机构采取设置增值分享条款、完善商业保险制度、尝试资产证券化等破题之术。