The Federal Government has reaffirmed its steadfast commitment to the welfare of Nigerian students studying abroad under the Bilateral Education Agreement (BEA) Scholarship Programme. The BEA Programme, a product of strong diplomatic relations and mutual cooperation, enables Nigerian students to pursue academic studies in partner countries such as China, Russia, Algeria, Hungary, Morocco, Egypt, and Serbia.

Through these agreements, host countries provide beneficiaries with free tuition, accommodation, and monthly stipends, while the Federal Government of Nigeria complements this support with take-off grants, monthly supplementation throughout the study period and return passage upon successful completion of their programmes. To this end, the government through the Federal Ministry of Education has confirmed that all supplementary allowances due to Nigerian scholars have been paid up to December 2024.

The Director, Press and Public Relations of the Ministry, Folasade Boriowo in a statement said this reflects the Minister of Education’s sustained efforts to priorities the needs of Nigerian students abroad. It added that the Ministry however, acknowledged that recent exchange rate fluctuations led to shortfalls in fund disbursement saying to address this, the Minister has formally requested additional funding to cover the differentials and ensure the full remittance of entitlements to all affected students.

The statement added that provisions for the scholarship programme have been captured under the Federal Ministry of Education’s Capital Budget and In line with the extension of the 2024 Capital Budget, disbursement of funds under the 2025 Capital Budget is expected to commence in earnest once implementation begins. The Ministry assured all stakeholders of its unwavering commitment to supporting Nigerian scholars abroad and is working diligently to meet all obligations under the BEA in a timely and effective manner.