Nigeria Spends N1bn Annually On Foreign Students – Director

Nigeria spends about N1 billion annually as scholarship for foreign students studying in the country, the Director, Federal Scholarship Board, Mrs Hindatu Abdullahi, has said. Abdullahi told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Thursday that government was spending the amount on the programme as `reciprocal scholarship’ for the students concerned.
She said the scholarship was part of the Bilateral Education Agreements (BEA) programme between Nigeria and some other countries.
The director said that as part of the agreement, Nigeria bears the cost of tuition, accommodation and a little supplementation for the students.
The countries, Abdullahi further said, were India, Turkey, Russia, Cuba, China, Japan, Algeria, Ukraine, Romania, Syria, Czech Republic and Egypt. She said that many Nigerians were also studying in those countries.
“Their host countries are also expected to pay for accommodation, tuition and allowances.’’ Abdullahi said that when admitted to institutions in those countries, Nigeria caters for their travel expenses, all administrative works and health insurance.