URGENT: Rescue Nigerian Scholarship Students in Russia – 2 Years Without Stipends

URGENT: Rescue Nigerian Scholarship Students in Russia - 2 Years Without Stipends

To: President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Federal Ministry of Education, NIDCOM, Nigerian Embassy Moscow  

From: Concerned Nigerians + Affected Students

We, Nigerian citizens and concerned stakeholders, urgently call on the Federal Government of Nigeria to immediately intervene and pay outstanding scholarship stipends to Nigerian students in Rostov, Russia.

The Problem:  

Since September 20, 2024, Nigerian students under the Bilateral Educational Agreement between Nigeria and Russia in Rostov have not received their monthly government allowance.  

These are 4th, 5th year medical students and other undergraduates representing Nigeria abroad.  

For over 4 months, they have been surviving in extreme cold, without money for food, accommodation, transport, and basic necessities. Some are being threatened with eviction. Their academics and health are at risk.

Why This Matters:  

1. Humanitarian Crisis: Students are hungry and stranded in a foreign country during winter.

2. Reputation: Nigeria’s image is being damaged. Other countries are watching how we treat our students abroad.

3. Breach of Agreement: The government committed to fund these scholars. Abandoning them mid-program wastes years of investment.

Our Demands: 

1. Immediate payment of all outstanding allowances from September 2024 to date.

2. A public timeline from the Federal Ministry of Education on when payments will resume regularly.

3. Direct engagement between NIDCOM, the Nigerian Embassy in Moscow, and the affected students to verify and resolve this.

We are not asking for charity. We are asking the government to honor its promise to the very students it sent abroad to bring knowledge back to Nigeria.

Mr. President, please do not let our future doctors, engineers, and leaders suffer in silence.

Sign and share this petition until it gets to the appropriate authorities.

#NigerianStudentsInRussia #PayOurScholarshipNow #TinubuHelpUs