The Federal Government has dismissed claims that Nigeria currently ranks among countries with the highest number of students studying abroad, insisting that reforms in the education sector are beginning to reverse the trend.
Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, stated this during an interview on Channels Television on Tuesday while reacting to reports about Nigeria’s outbound student migration.
Minister rejects 2023 data
The programme presenter had referenced 2023 data showing that Nigeria ranked third globally in outbound student mobility, accounting for about five per cent of students studying outside their home countries.
However, Alausa dismissed the figures as outdated and no longer reflective of the current reality in Nigeria’s education sector.
“That’s not Japa. And please, qualify your data. Thank God you told me it was 2023 figure,” he said.
According to the minister, 2023 represented a difficult period for Nigerian universities due to prolonged academic disruptions and underinvestment in tertiary education.
‘Things have changed’
Alausa said conditions in Nigerian universities have improved significantly under the current administration.
“2023 was when we came in. There was no academic continuity. They had the kind of extensive investment you’ve made in a tertiary education that wasn’t there,” he stated.
The minister revealed that the Ministry of Education had been monitoring outbound student movement through its educational support services department.
According to him, the government has observed what he described as a “precipitous drop” in the number of Nigerian students leaving the country for studies abroad.
“We’ve seen precipitous drop in those number of student going out. Our tertiary institutions are better now. We have academic continuity, academic session continuity,” he said.
FG cites rising confidence in local institutions
Alausa pointed to programmes like the Joint Universities Preliminary Examinations Board (JUPEB), Nigeria’s equivalent of British A-levels, as evidence of growing confidence in local education.
He explained that many students who previously travelled abroad for similar programmes are now enrolling within Nigeria instead.
The minister also referenced institutions like the University of Lagos law programme, claiming that some schools now receive more applications than available admission slots.
“Kids are staying there. The quality of education is significantly better. If you now compare the 2023 data with 2024 and 2025 and see the precipitous drop of Nigeria going out,” he added.