FG denies abandonment of Morocco scholarship students

Federal Government denies abandonment of Morocco scholarship students, confirms BES payments through 2024 budget year and no new awards after October 2025

The Federal Government says it has received claims about Nigerian scholarship students in the Kingdom of Morocco, and it has rejected those claims as false. The Ministry presents the statement as a correction of what it calls misinformation circulating in some quarters.

The notice is attributed to the Honourable Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa CON.

Status of students and payments under the BES programme

The Minister says no Nigerian student on a valid Federal Government scholarship has been abandoned. He also states that all beneficiaries enrolled under the Bilateral Education Scholarship (BES) Programme before 2024 have received payments up to the 2024 budget year, consistent with Federal Government obligations.

On the issue of outstanding balances, the Minister links delays to fiscal constraints (a practical reality the statement highlights). He says the matter is being addressed through engagements between the Federal Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Finance.

Claim of new awards and the status of circulating documents

The Minister states that no new bilateral scholarship awards were made in October 2025, or at any time after. He further states that documents being circulated to suggest new awards are fake and unauthenticated; the statement frames them as an attempt to mislead the public and discredit government policy.

Why government-funded bilateral scholarships abroad were discontinued

The Minister says the decision to discontinue government-funded bilateral scholarships abroad followed a policy review. He states that the review found Nigeria has capacity within its universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education to deliver the affected programmes locally.

On that basis, the statement says the Federal Government now supports only scholarships that are fully funded by foreign governments, with all financial obligations borne by host countries.

Support for students already enrolled, and the option to return

The Minister says the Federal Government remains committed to students already enrolled under the earlier arrangements, and will support them until they complete their programmes.

He also outlines a pathway for students who may prefer to discontinue their studies abroad. Such students may formally write to the Director, Department of Scholarship Awards. The statement says they will be returned to Nigeria and placed in appropriate tertiary institutions of their choice; the Federal Government says it will also cover return travel costs to support an orderly transition.

What the statement says about scholarship reforms

The Minister says the current administration is focused on removing waste and abuse within the scholarship system. The statement argues that earlier practices, where overseas training was sponsored for courses already established in Nigeria, created avoidable financial burdens. It describes current reforms as aimed at transparency, accountability, and careful management of public resources.

The Federal Government also states that it rejects misinformation and blackmail, and says it remains committed to the welfare of Nigerian students.

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