Tinubu Administration Accused of Abandoning Nigerian Students Abroad as Education Funding Crisis Deepens

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of breaching Nigeria’s Bilateral Education Agreement, alleging that the policy shift has left about 1,600 Nigerian students stranded overseas without financial support.

In a statement released in Abuja, Atiku claimed that the scholarship programme was discontinued without formal notice to affected students or their families, despite many beneficiaries already being in the middle of undergraduate and postgraduate studies abroad.

He explained that the Bilateral Education Agreement, established in 1993 and revitalised in 1999, was designed to enable Nigerian students study in partner countries through government-to-government arrangements. According to him, the programme also served as a strategic diplomatic and human capital development tool that has now been abandoned.

Atiku stated that what was initially announced as a temporary five-year suspension of the scheme later evolved into a complete withdrawal of support, leaving students without stipends and essential allowances needed for survival.

He noted that outstanding entitlements owed to beneficiaries now run into thousands of dollars per student, adding that many have appealed for the payment of stipends exceeding $6,000 each.

According to Atiku, the justification offered by the government was that public funds were limited and must be managed responsibly, with resources redirected toward domestic priorities. He argued, however, that such reasoning ignored the immediate welfare and safety of Nigerian students already committed to academic programmes abroad.

The former vice president said the situation worsened between September and December 2023, when stipends were not paid at all. He added that in 2024, monthly allowances were reduced by 56 percent, dropping from $500 to $220, before payments were eventually stopped completely. No stipends, he alleged, were paid throughout 2025.

He described the impact on students as severe, citing hunger, unpaid rent, emotional distress, and social stigma as daily realities faced by beneficiaries across multiple countries.

Atiku further claimed that the crisis took a tragic turn in Morocco, where a Nigerian student reportedly died in November after months of hardship linked to unpaid allowances, turning what had been quiet suffering into national concern.

He also disclosed that affected students and parents staged protests in Abuja, visiting the Federal Ministries of Education and Finance to demand explanations and urgent intervention, but said their appeals received little response.

The former vice president criticised comments attributed to the education minister suggesting that students who were no longer comfortable could be sponsored to return home. He said such remarks trivialised years of academic commitment and sacrifice, reducing serious educational pursuits to administrative inconvenience.

According to him, the statement conveyed a message of abandonment rather than reassurance, leaving parents anxious and students uncertain about their future.

Atiku concluded that Nigerian scholars currently studying in foreign institutions under the agreement are not only waiting for overdue financial support, but also for clear assurance that their country remains committed to their education, welfare, and long-term development.