Parents of Nigerian students studying abroad on government scholarships on Monday blocked the entrance of the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja to protest the non-payment of outstanding stipends owed to their children.
The protesters, carrying placards and chanting solidarity songs, said their children under the Bilateral Education Agreement (BEA) and other federal scholarship programmes had not received their allowances for 16 months. They added that an additional eight-month shortfall remained unresolved.
According to them, the prolonged delay has left many of the affected students stranded, unable to pay for accommodation, feeding, research materials and other essential needs.
Some parents who spoke during the protest said several students were facing eviction notices and academic setbacks, while others were reportedly surviving on loans and support from colleagues in their host countries.
“We have written letters, held meetings and waited patiently for months, yet nothing has changed. Our children are suffering abroad while the government keeps promising,” one of the protesting parents said.
They called on President Bola Tinubu and the Minister of Finance to intervene urgently to prevent further hardship for the students.
As of the time of filing this report, officials of the ministry had yet to address the demonstrators, even as security personnel monitored the entrance to maintain order.
More details later.
