Nigerians studying overseas, under the Bilateral Educational Agreement, BEA, Scholarship, have appealed to President Bola Tinubu to pay them their prolonged stipends.
The coalition, which represents Nigerian scholars in countries like Russia, Morocco, Algeria, China, and Hungary, pleaded with the Federal Government to honour its financial commitments as many students are facing severe hardships.
The spokesperson for the Coalition of all the Nigerian Bilateral Education Agreement, BEA, Student Association, Ayuba Anas Yushau, voiced the collective concerns of the students in a statement on Wednesday.
“For the past six to eight months, scholars enrolled in various institutions abroad have endured financial strain due to the delay in receiving their stipends.
“In addition, from the last payments we received (March-August), there was a shortfall of practically two and a half months’ payment. Moreover, some students in China have not received any stipends since they arrived in April and May 2023.
“In some cases, there has been a shortfall of nearly two and a half months’ worth of payments, and this has had serious consequences for our well-being,” he revealed.
Yushau noted that the critical stipends intended for basic living expenses have been withheld, leaving the students without the means to afford housing, utilities, or food.
He further lamented that In Russia, the increased cost of living coupled with the stipend delays is pushing Nigerian students to the brink.
“We earnestly plead with our President, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as a father figure and a visionary in education, to intervene in this pressing matter. His intervention in ensuring the prompt disbursement of our stipends will not only alleviate our current hardships but also allow us, his scholars, to focus wholeheartedly on our studies.
“We are confident that under President Tinubu’s compassionate and forward-thinking leadership, swift action will be taken to resolve this issue, enabling us to continue our academic pursuits without the burden of financial strain,” the statement read.