By Musa Baba Adamu
The Senate Tuesday mandated its Committee on Education to summon the Federal Scholarship Board and the Minister of Education to provide detailed report on the status of all Nigerian students under international scholarship programs including a breakdown of their unpaid entitlements.
It also urged the Federal Government to impose appropriate sanctions on the officials within the Federal Scholarship Board and the Federal Ministry of Education who are accountable for these failings, thereby upholding the integrity of Nigeria’s international commitments.
Senate’s resolutions were sequel to a motion sponsored to that effect by Senator Saliu Mustapha ( APC Kwara Central) .
Senator Mustapha in the motion for urgent investigation and resolution of the challenges of tuitions payment and other welfare related problems faced by Nigerian Students on Federal Government of Nigeria , Overseas , Commonwealth and Bilateral Scholarship Programmes , lamented plights being faced by the beneficiaries.
He noted that the Federal Government of Nigeria awards annual scholarships to outstanding students from across the country to further their (graduate/undergraduate) studies internationally, thereby fostering a cadre of exceptional professionals for national development.
Also noted that these scholarships are part of a broader initiative to promote specialized education through partnerships with foreign institutions, facilitated by entities such as the Federal Scholarship Board under the Federal Ministry of Education.
The initiative he added , supports the Government’s commitment to Bilateral Education Agreements (BEA) and Multilateral Agreements with Commonwealth and other international partners.
However lamented reports of Nigerian students facing hardships in Algeria, China, Morocco, Russia and the United Kingdom due to non-payment of tuition and living stipends, leading to negative media coverage and national embarrassment.
He posited that the recurrence of these issues suggests systemic failures, despite previous interventions by this Distinguished Chamber to prevent such situations.
He stated further that the Federal Government’s failure to meet its financial commitments under these international agreements for over ten months, will jeopardize the welfare and academic progress of the affected students.
Consequently, according to him , failure to fulfill these obligations not only undermines our national reputation but also poses significant diplomatic concerns and risks pushing our students towards unlawful activities to sustain their livelihood abroad.
