A recent report shows that Nigerians who want to study abroad spent $340.84 million on their university applications from January to June 2023. This information comes from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s data on money spent on foreign education.
In April 2023, people spent $40.54 million on foreign education, and in May 2023, it was $48.81 million. However, in June 2023, the spending decreased to $32.61 million. Compared to the first quarter of 2023, this is a drop of $96.92 million, or 44.28%.
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If we look at the figures from the second quarter of 2022, the situation is worse, with a 50.5% decrease of $124.42 million.
The experts believe that the Central Bank’s inability to meet the demand for foreign exchange meant that students had to get dollars from Bureau De Change operators because banks were slow in processing their Form A applications.
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Recent data from the UK’s Home Office shows a big increase in the number of study visas given to Nigerians. As of June 2022, 65,929 study visas were issued, compared to 20,427 during the same period in 2021.
The Central Bank has a backlog of forex demand on the official market, which forces people and businesses to turn to the black market for dollars. This problem is because Nigeria’s income from exports has been decreasing due to less investment and lower oil exports.
Dr. Anderson Ezeibe, the National President of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, explained that the government’s lack of investment in the education sector has had a negative impact. He said that schools in Nigeria need better facilities and equipment to produce well-trained graduates. To solve this, the government should invest more in education so that there’s no need for people to study abroad.
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