Federal Gonernment Moves to Settle Stranded Foreign Scholarship Students with N8bn Payout

The Federal Government has pledged to clear outstanding payments owed to Nigerian students affected by the now-discontinued Bilateral Education Agreement (BEA) scholarship programme, announcing an N8bn intervention aimed at settling beneficiaries stranded abroad.

Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, disclosed the development during an interview on Channels Television on Tuesday, revealing that N4bn had already been released while the remaining N4bn is expected to be approved within two weeks.According to the minister, the government is working closely with the Ministry of Finance to ensure all affected students receive their payments.

 “We’ve paid four billion of it. We’re disbursing the four billion now. This additional four billion will be approved. I’ve been in constant communication with the Minister of Finance. It will be approved in the next two weeks. They will be settled,” Alausa said.

Government Cites Fraud and Abuse

Alausa defended the Federal Government’s decision to scrap the BEA scholarship scheme, describing it as heavily abused and no longer aligned with its original purpose.

He explained that the programme was initially created as a diplomatic arrangement to train Nigerians in specialised disciplines such as medicine, engineering, and aeronautics through partnerships with countries including China, Russia, Algeria, Hungary, Morocco, Egypt, and Serbia.

However, he said the initiative gradually became a broad overseas education sponsorship programme for courses that could easily be studied in Nigerian universities.

The minister recounted one of the first files presented to him after assuming office — a request to approve N650m for 60 students travelling to Morocco.

He said several of the proposed courses raised serious concerns, including a case involving a Nigerian student sponsored to study English in Morocco, a predominantly French-speaking country.“650 million for 60 students? And as I was looking at the courses that were going to go to Morocco, we have Nigerian scholarship given to a student that will go study English in Morocco, a French-speaking country,” he said.

Alausa also cited programmes such as psychology, sociology, zoology, and botany as examples of courses he believed did not justify expensive foreign sponsorships.

 Double Enrolment Allegations

The minister further revealed that investigations uncovered cases where some beneficiaries were simultaneously enrolled in Nigerian universities while receiving BEA scholarship funds.

“We also had incidences of kids that got this scholarship that they’re studying in Nigerian universities, getting the money. So, we stopped it,” he added.

The revelations, according to the government, contributed significantly to the formal cancellation of the programme in April 2025. Before the programme was officially scrapped, many Nigerian students studying overseas under the BEA arrangement had already faced severe financial difficulties.

Between September 2023 and August 2024, beneficiaries reportedly received no stipends. Although payments resumed in September 2024, students said allowances were reduced by more than 56 per cent.

Several scholars reportedly faced eviction from hostels, suspension from academic activities, and denial of access to university services because tuition and accommodation fees remained unpaid.

The cancellation of the scheme affected more than 1,200 Nigerian students studying abroad. Despite the programme’s suspension extending into 2026, a fresh N1.7bn allocation still appeared in the 2026 Appropriation Bill, prompting questions about whether the policy had been reversed.

The Federal Government, however, clarified that the allocation was merely a procedural rollover and not a reinstatement of the BEA scholarship programme.