Education minister says govt to review foreign scholarship schemes
Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, has said the Federal Government is reviewing its foreign scholarship and bilateral education arrangements with other countries. According to him, the government could no longer justify spending scarce public funds to send students abroad to study programmes that are already available in Nigerian universities, polytechnics and colleges of education. […] The…
Education Minister Dr Tunji Alausa announced that the Federal Government is reviewing its foreign scholarship and educational agreements with other nations. The government is reconsidering sending students abroad for programs that are available domestically, in an effort to avoid wasting scarce public funds. This move aligns with the government's goal of strengthening Nigeria's tertiary institutions and ensuring better value for public expenditure.
Alausa brought up a proposal he was given shortly after becoming minister, which involved 100,000 Nigerian students studying in Morocco. The minister criticized this proposal, stating that the courses were already offered in Nigeria, and students would have had to learn French first. He emphasized that supporting students abroad when Nigeria has a well-developed tertiary system is not cost-effective.
The government concluded that continuing the current arrangement would be an inefficient use of public funds. Foreign countries willing to support Nigerian students can do so without requiring financial assistance from Nigeria, as the circumstances that justified widespread student overseas education have changed.
Written by urgent.news from Ripples Nigeria's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
