Stakeholders in Nigeria’s university community have expressed divergent views on the federal government’s cancellation of foreign training for the country’s scholars.
While some applauded the measure, others described it as retrogressive and parochial.
At the opening of a three-day conference organised by the British Council in Abuja on Tuesday, November 26, 2024, the minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, said university lecturers would henceforth be trained in Nigeria.
He said the federal government would be spending substantial money on building a simulation lab, as well as developing the universities to save costs.
Alausa said, “We have just decided to cancel foreign training for scholars. The amount of money we are spending to train one scholar abroad could use it to train 20 people here. We will be training everybody here.
“We will unleash capacity in our universities. We are going to be spending more money now on research, innovation, and also on welfare, both on our academics and non-academics.”
Two days later, the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) also announced the suspension of the foreign component of the TETFund Scholarship for Academic Staff (TSAS) Intervention, effective January 1, 2025.
It said suspension was in response to the excessive cost of training in foreign institutions, as well as the high rate of abscondment among foreign scholars.
In separate reactions to the decision, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), students, and other stakeholders urged the government to redirect the savings from the ban into upgrading local universities.
They also called for increased investment in the domestic higher education sector to enhance the quality of education and reduce reliance on studying abroad.
The coordinator of ASUU, Abuja Zone, Dr Salahu Mohammed Lawal, advocated for the reinvestment of saved funds into Nigerian education to improve infrastructure and access.
He said foreign training cuts could benefit local education if the funds are properly directed.
Lawal charged the government to channel the savings into upgrading university infrastructure and increasing access to higher education for more Nigerians.
He said, “The news came with mixed feelings. First, it is good for Nigerian education if the expected money can be plunged into the university system to upgrade facilities. The issue of world-class education and research opportunities is nothing more than the commitment of resources to the sector. Thus, the saved money can be used for that.
“Second, the saved money can be used for more candidates within Nigeria to access higher education and research opportunities.”
On her part, Prof Maryam Abdu of the Kaduna State University said the suspension was caused by the deteriorating exchange rate, which has made it uneconomical for the government to continue with foreign training.
“The rate of US$1 to N1,780 or thereabouts is extremely expensive. Revenues in Nigeria, especially foreign exchange, are not forthcoming nor encouraging enough to continue to finance such programmes.
“The biggest challenge is that Nigerian institutions don’t have the capacity and infrastructure to absorb all the students. There are some courses that are not offered in Nigerian universities, which would further compound the problem,” she asserted.
Prof Abdu, however, urged the government to reconsider the issue and make scholarships available for some courses.
Similarly, the president of the National Association of University Students (NAUS), Comrade Peter Oche Josiah, said the action could limit access to specialised programmes and global exposure, affecting students’ career prospects and aspirations.
To address this, he said the government should focus on improving local universities by increasing funding, building infrastructure, and fostering international partnerships.
“While local institutions face challenges, with the right investments, they could provide quality education and research opportunities.
“This policy could initially reduce Nigeria’s attractiveness to international students unless significant reforms are made to elevate local education standards. Ultimately, the success of this policy depends on the government’s commitment to transforming local universities into world-class institutions.”
He also proposed a range of solutions or alternatives to the government, including strengthening domestic educational institutions, collaboration with international institutions, scholarships and grants for online learning, support for private sector involvement, improvement of research and development (R&D) in Nigeria, public awareness campaigns, and fostering innovation in education delivery.
A lawyer and public affairs analyst, Barr Carl Umegboro, knocked the policy, saying it was weak and weird.
“It’s more or less throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Whilst I concede there has been gross abuse of the policy, however, it is not sufficient to vote against it in entirety.”
According to him, all that is needed is to fight the abuse only by tightening the policy with checks and balances particularly by tying their participation to visible tasks and projects that must be completed after the main study time abroad. Irrefutably, going out there affords the scholars opportunity to interact with the global audience and space, and by doing so, they are able to measure our growth levels so we are not left behind all the time.
“This seclusive thinking is what has kept Nigeria trailing on every side of development. We measure our currency against foreign currencies, yet we want to cocoon the intellectual property by subjecting it to local standards.
“In science for instance, there are some kinds of knowledge that could only be acquired properly through hands-on experience obtainable from specific locations. Not until you go there, you may never know more than what you knew.
“The experiences scholars get during those programmes like the practical hands-on experience that broaden their scope of knowledge are enormous and very important. And those added knowledge usually come through those foreign programmes. And again, travelling, they say, is the best form of learning. Suffice it to say that shutting the door entirely on account of abuses is unacceptable,” Umegboro stated.
Similarly, some parents and students have expressed reservation over the new policy of the government.
They contended that knowledge is not stagnant as training goes beyond acquiring knowledge without practical knowledge that may not be available locally.
A medical student at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Azeez Abidemi, said new medical grounds were being broken worldwide and wondered how their lecturers could benefit from such research if they are limited to Nigeria.
Also, a parent, Mr Olayiwola Atanda, said technology was advancing on a daily basis and the need to go outside the box for lecturers to acquire knowledge cannot be over-emphasised.
The speakers asked the government to rethink the measure especially when it was spending so much on overseas trips for officials on trivial issues.
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