Education
Russia Records Low Turnout of African Students in 2020
By Kester Kenn Klomegah
As federal government scholarships are highly limited, Russia’s educational institutions are ready to train more and more specialists on a tuition-paying basis for Africa.
There are plans to boost the number of African students, but currently, approximately 60% of the total African students are on private contracts in the Russian Federation.
“The present and the future of Russia-Africa relations is not about charity, it’s about co-development,” stated Evgeny Primakov, Head of the Russian Federal Agency for International Humanitarian Cooperation (Rossotrudnichestvo), and also a member of the Secretariat of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum.
The Secretariat of the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum was created last year and it works under the Russian Foreign Ministry. It has, under its aegis, three coordination councils namely business, public and scientific councils. Primakov heads the humanitarian council that deals with education and humanitarian questions for the Foreign Ministry.
While talking about initiatives especially the sphere of education in the relationship between Russia and Africa, Primakov explicitly pointed the changing state of affairs in education and added that the number of Russian state scholarships for African citizens – for the whole continent made up of 54 African countries – has only increased from 1765 in 2019 to 1843 in 2020. At the same time, the number of applications submitted has decreased.
According to Primakov, due to the coronavirus outbreak, some African governments have decided not to launch the application campaign for Russian universities for the academic year 2020/2021 as there are difficulties with transportation, safety, and financing scholarships allocated in the African state’s budget.
He, further, mentioned that the Russian system of higher education needs to be adapted to the new realities so that it could gain more value on the international market.
Reports made available indicate that the Russian Federal Agency for International Humanitarian Cooperation currently operates eight representative offices in Africa: Egypt, Zambia, Morocco, Republic of the Congo, Tunisia, Tanzania, Ethiopia and South Africa.
During Russia-Africa inter-party conference held in late March 2021, under the theme “Russia – Africa: Reviving Traditions” which was organized and hosted by the United Russia Party, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov offered an assuring signal in his speech that Russia is stepping up efforts to engage in multifaceted developments with Africa.
That Russia has a lot to offer to African countries in terms of mutually beneficial cooperation as it traditionally maintains very close relations with many of these countries in the continent.
Lavrov told the online gathering “in the past few years, Russia-Africa cooperation has been noticeably stepped up. We are deepening our political dialogue, developing inter-parliamentary ties, promoting cooperation between ministries and departments and expanding scientific and humanitarian exchanges.”
With the education and training of specialists for Africa, Lavrov said that “over 27,000 African students study in Russian universities.” Understandably, this represents a significant increase of 9,000 students, up from approximate 18,000 as the given figure in October 2019.
Just about four or five months after the first Russia-Africa summit, World Health Organization(WHO) declared a coronavirus pandemic, nearly all countries locked down and civilian (passenger) air transport or aviation links completely paralyzed throughout 2020.
Statistics on African students are, in fact, still staggering. When contacted, Russia’s Ministry of Science and Higher Education declined to give the current substantive figure for Africa.
In a transcript posted to the official website, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, answering questions at a meeting with the students and staff of Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) University, in September 2019, nearly two months before the Sochi summit, pointed out that there were 15,000 Africans studying in Russia, and about a third (that is 5,000) of them had received scholarships provided by the Russian state.
That same year during the inter-parliamentary conference, Chairman of the State Duma, Viacheslav Volodin, was convinced that cultural and educational cooperation could be equally important areas that needed to be developed and intensified in Russian-African relations.
Volodin further suggested to continue discussing the issues of harmonizing legislation in the scientific and educational spheres and reminded us that hundreds of thousands of African students studied in the Soviet Union and Russia and that approximately 17,000 African students, the majority of them on private contracts, were studying in the Russian Federation.
On June 21, 2019, Dmitry Medvedev spoke at the opening of the 26th annual shareholders’ meeting of the African Export-Import Bank. One of the aspects of the relationships, he mentioned educational projects as particularly important and informed that 17,000 African students are studying in Russia, but hope that this figure will increase in future.
“Friends, of course, we can achieve more in all areas. We simply need to know each other better and be more open to one another,” he stressed in his speech.
In addition to the above, Professor Vladimir Filippov, Rector of the Russian University of People’s Friendship (RUDN), formerly Patrice Lumumba Friendship University, has underscored the fact that social attitudes toward foreigners first have to change positively, the need to create a multicultural learning environment, then the need to expand and deepen scientific ties between Russia and Africa.
Established in 1960 to provide higher education to Third World students, it later became an integral part of the Soviet cultural offensive in non-aligned countries. His university has gained international popularity as an educational and research institution located in southwest Moscow.
In order to earn revenue, Russia’s Ministry of Science and Higher Education has already launched a large-scale educational campaign abroad targeting to recruit private foreign students on tuition-paying contract annually into its educational institutions across the Russian Federation.
Experts from the Moscow based Center for Strategic Research indicated in an interview with this foreign correspondent that the percentage of Russian universities on the world market is considerably low. Due to this, there is a rare need to develop Russian education export opportunities, take progressive measures to raise interest in Russian education among foreigners.
As part of the renewed interest in Africa, Russia has been working on opportunities and diverse ways to increase the number of students, especially tuition-paying agreements for children of the growing elite families and middle-class from African countries at Russian universities.
Worth recalling that Russian President Vladimir Putin sent his greetings to all African leaders and participants of the first Russia-Africa Summit published on the Kremlin website in October that year, that the summit would help identify new areas and forms of cooperation, put forward promising joint initiatives. Further hoped it would bring the collaboration between Russia and Africa to a qualitatively new level and contribute to the development of our economies and the prosperity for both parties.
Later at the plenary session, Putin reiterated that by the mid-1980s, Russia had built about a hundred educational establishments in Africa and half a million Africans have been trained for work at industrial companies and agricultural facilities in African countries. And that 17,000 Africans, including some 4,000 who on federal scholarships, were studying here in the Russian Federation.
It is worthy to say that Putin specifically noted the good dynamics of specialist training and education in Russian educational institutions for African countries. Russian and African participants mapped out broad initiatives in the sphere of education during the first Russia-Africa Summit in Sochi.
For the joint work, there was a final joint declaration, adopted by the participants after the Sochi summit. The document outlines a set of goals and objectives for the further development of Russian-African cooperation. The next Russia-Africa Summit, venue to be decided by African leaders, is planned for 2022.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The federal government has dismissed rumours suggesting Nigerian scholarship students in Morocco have been abandoned, describing the reports as misleading and “deliberately crafted to misinform the public.”
Recently, a video went viral on social media showing that the students studying in Morocco under the federal government scholarship scheme were facing hardships, including homelessness and a lack of medical support.
However, in a statement signed by the Director of Press and Public Relations of the Federal Ministry of Education, Mr Boriowo Folasade, the Minister of Education, Mr Tunji Alausa, clarified that no Nigerian student on a valid federal government scholarship has been abandoned.
“The Honourable Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa, has clarified that no Nigerian student on a valid Federal Government scholarship has been abandoned. All beneficiaries duly enrolled under the Bilateral Education Scholarship (BES) Programme prior to 2024 have received payments up to the 2024 budget year, in line with the Federal Government’s obligations.
“Any temporary delays in outstanding payments are attributable to fiscal constraints and are currently being addressed through ongoing engagements between the Federal Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Finance,” Mr Alausa stated.
“The Minister further stated that no new bilateral scholarship awards were made in October 2025 or at any time thereafter. Documents being circulated to suggest otherwise are fake, unauthenticated, and constitute a calculated attempt to mislead the public and discredit government policy.
“Dr Alausa explained that the decision to discontinue government-funded bilateral scholarships abroad followed a comprehensive policy review, which established that Nigeria now possesses sufficient capacity within its universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education to deliver the affected programmes locally.
“Consequently, only scholarships that are fully funded by foreign governments are now being supported, with all financial obligations borne entirely by the host countries.
“Notwithstanding this policy shift, the Federal Government remains fully committed to students already enrolled under the previous arrangements and will continue to support them until the completion of their programmes.
“In addition, students who may prefer to discontinue their studies abroad may formally write to the Director, Department of Scholarship Awards. Such students are being offered the option of returning to Nigeria, where they will be seamlessly reintegrated into appropriate tertiary institutions of their choice. The Federal Government will also cover their return travel costs to ensure a smooth and orderly transition,” the statement noted.
According to the Minister, the current administration remains committed to eliminating inefficiencies and abuses within the scholarship system, stressing that past practices that sponsored overseas training for courses already well established in Nigeria placed avoidable financial burdens on the nation.
He reaffirmed that the ongoing reforms are therefore aimed at promoting transparency, accountability, and the prudent management of public resources.
The federal government reiterated its unwavering commitment to the welfare of Nigerian students and strongly rejects misinformation, blackmail, or any attempt to undermine policies designed to strengthen national capacity and safeguard the integrity of the education sector.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
A significant step has been taken by the duo of Alternative Bank (AltBank) and the Busayo Ademuyiwa Foundation (BAF) to address the declining access to trained educators across Nigeria.
The two organisations recently a one-day capacity programme for teachers in the country at the 2025 BAF Teachers’ Conference in Lagos.
The event delivered hands-on training to hundreds of primary and secondary school teachers drawn from underserved communities across the country.
Nigeria’s education sector sits at a critical inflection point. With over 65 per cent of classrooms in underserved regions lacking access to trained educators or modern teaching tools, the learning crisis represents a structural failure with long-term economic consequences if not adequately addressed.
Rather than focus on policy rhetoric or aspirational targets, the conference tackled hard realities including teacher burnout, mental resilience, classroom innovation on a budget, and digital skill development.
Sessions were designed for practicality and replication, enabling attendees to take back immediately usable tools and frameworks to their schools. Specialised workshops on emotional health, low-tech teaching methodologies, and inclusive learning design underscored a broader commitment to both teacher well-being and student outcomes.
Key stakeholders in attendance included policymakers, school heads, and representatives from Nigeria’s corporate CSR sector, underscoring the convergence between social investment and educational equity.
Featured speakers included the president of the Nigerian Union of Teachers, Mr Audu Titus Amba; the General Manager of BIC Nigeria, Mr Anthony Amawe; the founder of Almanah Hope Foundation, Hope Ifeyinwa Nwakwesi; and Doyinsola Jawando-Adebomehin of Sequoia Span.
“The people who hold up Nigeria’s education system don’t need applause, they need backup,” the Executive Director for South at AltBank, Mrs Korede Demola-Adeniyi, stated.
“We see this platform as critical infrastructure. Equipping a teacher with the right tools and support is the most direct path to long-term national productivity,” she added.
“The challenge in Nigeria’s education sector is execution, not awareness. This partnership is part of a broader operational strategy to find the pressure points, inject support where it changes outcomes, and back it with measurable value. Our role is catalytic, not just financial,” Mrs Demola-Adeniyi stated further.
Business Post reports that the conference aligns with the bank’s HEART Strategy, a long-term investment thesis focused on Health, Education, Agriculture, Renewable Energy, and Technology.
Under this framework, the Bank continues to deploy capital and partnerships into scalable solutions targeting Nigeria’s most underserved sectors.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Plans have been concluded by Nigerian Breweries to support about 1,000 Nigerian students in Lagos, Ogun, and Enugu States.
The foremost brewing company is carrying out this empowerment initiative with a leading non-profit organisation, FATE Foundation, through the Orange Corners Student Ambassadors Programme of the Netherlands.
This partnership marks a significant step in advancing youth entrepreneurship in Nigeria, equipping young people with the knowledge, skills, and opportunities needed to build sustainable businesses and contribute meaningfully to the nation’s economy.
This is because the scheme is to promote entrepreneurship and offer networking opportunities in Nigerian tertiary institutions. Ambassadors are selected from specific universities to inspire students to see entrepreneurship as a desirable career path and to foster a culture of innovation within universities.
It targets students aged 18–35 currently enrolled in tertiary institutions across Lagos, Ogun, and Enugu States.
“The partnership reinforces Nigerian Breweries’ long-standing commitment to youth empowerment and entrepreneurship development. Through initiatives like this, we are creating pathways for the next generation of entrepreneurs and business leaders in Nigeria,” the Corporate Affairs Director for Nigerian Breweries, Mr Uzodinma Odenigbo, stated.
He further highlighted the company’s track record in youth empowerment, noting that since the renewed focus on youth empowerment and entreprenuership, Nigerian Breweries has impacted 2,365 young Nigerians across 24 states and the FCT.
Also speaking on the partnership, the Executive Director of FATE Foundation, Ms Adenike Adeyemi, expressed enthusiasm about the collaboration between Nigerian Breweries and the Orange Corners Programme.
“Nigerian Breweries has been a longstanding partner with Orange Corners Nigeria in many ways. We are delighted to have the company continue to support the Orange Corners Programme and elated that this commitment will reach an additional 1000 young Nigerians leveraging the proven Orange Corners Student Ambassadors framework,” she said.
Ms Adeyemi outlined FATE Foundation’s role to include designing and delivering the training curriculum, managing student registration and participation, maintaining accurate records of all beneficiaries, and coordinating all logistical and technical aspects to ensure successful programme delivery.
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