President Bola Tinubu-led federal government has announced a 12.7% reduction in allowances for foreign scholars studying under the Bilateral Educational Agreement Scholarship.
According to the Federal Ministry of Education, the reduction is due to economic crises.
The Punch reported that the scholars who are studying in countries like Russia, Morocco, Algeria, China, and Hungary have not received their stipends for eight months.
What is Bilateral Educational Agreement Scholarship
The Bilateral Educational Agreement Scholarship is a program for education exchange between Nigeria and partnering countries.
The Federal Scholarship Board, under the Federal Ministry of Education, supervises the scholarship.
A memo from the Director of the Federal Scholarship Board announced the reduction in allowances.
The monthly allowance has been reduced from $500 to $220, and the graduation allowance from $2500 to $2000.
The PG research allowance has also been reduced from $1,000 to $500, and the total payment per student has been reduced from $5,650 to $4,370.
Why Tinubu slashes allowances of Nigerian students
The ministry attributed the reduction to the prevailing economic situation and promised to pay the balances owed to scholars as soon as funds were available.
There has been an increase in the cost of living in the country since President Tinubu announced the removal of the fuel subsidy and other economic measures.
The scholars have been facing financial strain due to the delay in receiving their stipends, with some students in China not receiving any stipends since April and May 2023.
