Education Minister Reacts To ‘Abandonment’ of Nigerian Scholarship Students Overseas

The alleged abandonment overseas of Nigerian scholarship students in the Kingdom of Morocco has attracted the attention of the Federal Government.

The Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa, reacting to the rumours, has dismissed them as false reports, stating that all valid beneficiaries remain under government support.

“No Nigerian student on a valid Federal Government scholarship has been abandoned,” Alausa stated in a statement on Wednesday, through the ministry’s Director of Press and Public Affairs, Boriowo Folasade.

“All beneficiaries duly enrolled under the Bilateral Education Scholarship Programme before 2024 have been paid up to the 2024 budget year, in line with the Federal Government’s obligations.”

“Any temporary delay in payments is a result of prevailing fiscal realities and is being addressed through ongoing engagements between the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Finance,” he said.

“No new bilateral scholarship awards were made in October 2025 or at any time after,” he said.

“The documents in circulation are unauthenticated and represent a calculated attempt to misinform the public and discredit government policy.”

The minister also provided reason for the federal government’s decision to discontinue government-funded bilateral scholarships abroad.

According to him, the decision followed a comprehensive policy review which showed that Nigeria now has sufficient local capacity to run the affected programmes.

“Nigeria’s universities, polytechnics and colleges of education now have the capacity to offer these programmes locally,” he said.

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“Consequently, only scholarships fully funded by foreign governments are being supported, with all financial obligations borne by the host countries.”

“The Federal Government remains fully committed to all students already enrolled and will continue to support them until the completion of their programmes,” he said.

On Nigerian scholarship students overseas who may wish to discontinue their studies abroad , the minister stated: “Such students may formally write to the Director, Department of Scholarship Awards, and will be seamlessly reintegrated into appropriate tertiary institutions in Nigeria.

“The Federal Government will also cover their return travel costs to ensure a smooth transition.”

“Past practices that sponsored overseas training for courses already well-established in Nigeria placed avoidable financial burdens on the nation,” Dr Alausa said.