Kathmandu. With the presidential election less than two weeks away, US President Joe Biden on Thursday announced additional student loan relief worth about $44.5 billion for public servants.

Praising the efforts of Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to improve debt forgiveness since coming to office, the White House said this action will affect about 6०,००० borrowers across the country. Harris is the Democratic candidate in the November White House race. He is competing against former Republican President Donald Trump.

The announcement comes at a time when households are feeling the burden of higher living costs in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and voters have cited the economy as a top concern in polls. With the latest step, President Biden has mentioned in a statement that more than one million people’s loans have been canceled under the public service loan waiver.

Program commitments to support teachers, nurses and others included 10 years of public service and student loan forgiveness after 10 years of repayment.
“For too long, the government failed to fulfill its commitments and only 7,000 people received amnesty,” Biden said. “I will never stop working to make higher education affordable.”

Vice President Harris said higher education should be a pathway to financial opportunity, not a lifetime of debt. She also pledged to continue working to lower costs, make higher education more affordable and reduce the student loan burden.

Biden has launched efforts to cancel student loans for millions of Americans following the moratorium on student loan payments imposed by former President Trump during the coronavirus pandemic. Americans have $411 trillion in student loans, and some will have to pay them off for decades as they start jobs and families.