Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo State has approved the sum of N350 million as payment for the 2025 scholarship and bursary for students of the state’s origin in higher institutions across the country.

This is contained in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Ebenezer Adeniyan, on Tuesday in Akure.

According to Aiyedatiwa, the payment will cover five categories of students, including medical students, law students, and students with disabilities.

He noted that the money was approved for about 12,000 students, which was an improvement from that of 2024, when the sum of N335m was disbursed to 11,200 students.

Aiyedatiwa noted that in 2024, the annual bursary for the students was increased from N10,000 to N20,000, while students with disabilities got N75,000 each and scholarship beneficiaries got N100,000 each.

“My administration recognises education as the cornerstone for development. It is the key to unlocking the potential of young people.

“Many of our students face significant financial challenges in pursuing their academic dreams.

“That is why we have these bursaries and scholarship awards, as well as financial assistance, to provide support, alleviate financial burdens, and enable our students to focus on their studies,” he said.
Aiyedatiwa said that the awards were a testament to the government’s commitment to investing in the future of the state and the country.

“We must ensure that our students have access to quality education and the necessary support to excel in their academic pursuits,” he said.

Recall that the government, on August 27, banned private schools from organising graduation ceremonies for pupils of nursery and primary schools, as well as students of junior secondary school in the state.

It also prohibited illegal and unregistered schools and banned the reaccreditation of all private schools for quality assurance.

FOLLOW US ON:

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

PINTEREST

TIKTOK

YOUTUBE

LINKEDIN

TUMBLR

INSTAGRAM

Tens of thousands of international students in the United Kingdom are being directly contacted by the government with a warning: leave the country when your visa expires or face removal, the BBC reported on Tuesday.

The Home Office has launched a new campaign aimed at tackling what it describes as an “alarming” rise in student visa holders attempting to stay in the UK by claiming asylum.

In a first-of-its-kind move, the government is now proactively contacting students via text and email to issue formal warnings about the consequences of overstaying.

The campaign came amid growing concern in Whitehall about students using the asylum system as a way to remain in the country after their studies end.

“If you have no legal right to remain in the UK, you must leave. If you don’t, we will remove you,” the messages read, as reported by BBC.

According to Home Office data, around 15 per cent of asylum applications last year—approximately 16,000—were submitted by people who originally arrived on student visas. While the data does not specify how many of those were made after visas had expired, officials say the pattern is clear enough to warrant immediate action.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told the BBC that some students are “claiming asylum even when things have not changed in their home country.”

She added, “We obviously will do our bit to support genuine refugees, but if nothing has changed in their country, people should not be claiming asylum at the end of a student course.”

Cooper also said the growing number of students entering the asylum system is placing added pressure on already overstretched asylum accommodation and hotel services.

Around 10,000 students whose visas are nearing expiry have already received direct warnings.

A further 130,000 students and their families are expected to be contacted in the coming months, coinciding with the busy autumn intake period, according to the BBC.

The message being sent reads in full, “If you submit an asylum claim that lacks merit, it will be swiftly and robustly refused.

“Any request for asylum support will be assessed against destitution criteria. If you do not meet the criteria, you will not receive support.

“If you have no legal right to remain in the UK, you must leave. If you don’t, we will remove you,” as reported by BBC.

The crackdown is part of a broader tightening of immigration rules under the Labour government. In May, the Home Office announced that universities would face stricter thresholds on visa refusal and course completion rates to maintain their ability to sponsor international students.

While much public attention has focused on small boat arrivals across the Channel, ministers are increasingly concerned about legal entrants—such as students—who later switch to the asylum system.

Of the 108,000 asylum applications made in the UK last year, around 40,000 came from people who arrived legally, including on work, study, or visitor visas. By contrast, about 35,000 came from small boat crossings, BBC reported.

Among legal entrants, student visa holders made up the largest group seeking asylum, with numbers almost six times higher than in 2020. Although the figure has since fallen by 10 per cent, the Home Office wants further reductions.

Cooper acknowledged that student visa asylum claims account for just over 10 per cent of total applications but insisted that “to fix the system, we must tackle every single bit of it.”

The government has also moved to reduce the amount of time overseas graduates can stay in the UK after completing their courses, from two years to 18 months.

The number of successful asylum claims from skilled worker visa holders has also declined, according to recent Home Office figures.

FOLLOW US ON:

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

PINTEREST

TIKTOK

YOUTUBE

LINKEDIN

TUMBLR

INSTAGRAM

The Academic Staff Union of Universities has asked Nigerians to hold the Federal Government responsible for the paralysis that will be experienced in Nigerian universities in few days to come.

ASUU Benin Zone gave the charge on Monday at a news conference held at Dennis Osadebay University, Asaba, the Delta State capital.

Speaking on behalf of various ASUU Chairmen of the universities under the Benin zone, the Zonal Coordinator, Monday Igbafen, lamented that scholars are the most marginalised in Nigeria.

Igbafen said, “We want to tell Nigerians not to hold ASSU responsible, but hold the Federal government responsible for the paralysis that will be done to Nigerian universities in few days to come.

“On behalf of the Benin Zone of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, I wish to welcome you to this conference.

“The Benin zone of ASUU comprises University of Benin, Benin City, Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko, Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology, Okitipupa, Delta State University, Abraka, Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun, University of Delta, Agbor, Dennis Osadebay University, Asaba and Southern Delta University, Ozoro.

“We are compelled to call you again at this defining moment in the history of university education in Nigeria, as it has become crystal clear that the Federal Government and its agents are inexplicably determined to cripple academic activities in the nation’s universities once more.

“Since the suspension of our last strike action in October 2022, the Federal Government is yet to make good its promise to actualise the review of our dismal conditions of service. It is yet to sign the draft renegotiated 2009 FGN/ASUU Agreement, which our Union views as a significant milestone in the resolution of the issues at hand.”

He added, “The satisfactory and conclusive renegotiation of the Agreement and its successful implementation is the only desirable solution to the worsening living and working conditions of staff, the pandemic problem of underfunding and other challenges of university governance in Nigeria.

“At the moment, the Federal Government is still unwilling to pay up years of arrears of promotion entitlements, still pays lip service to the duty of adequately funding education and continues to be reluctant to release our withheld three and a half months’ salaries and third-party deductions.

“It is unimaginable that, in the face of the daily exponential increases in the cost of basic services and goods in Nigeria, university lecturers have been abandoned to grapple with the harsh realities of an abysmally poor salary structure they have had to endure for 16 agonising years. Nigerians should be aware that this is a critical moment in the history of university education in the country, as it is currently on the precipice.

“It is on this basis that we call on all well-meaning Nigerians students, parents, civil society organisations, the press, the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), statesmen, captains of industry and other stakeholders to prevail on the Federal and various State Governments in our country to honour their agreements with ASUU and prevent the nation’s educational sector from sliding further into an undesirable level of decay and dysfunction.”

ASUU noted that members were not delighted in going on strike but have completely exhausted their options, blaming top government officials for the poor educational system, as their children are outside the country for studying.

FOLLOW US ON:

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

PINTEREST

TIKTOK

YOUTUBE

LINKEDIN

TUMBLR

INSTAGRAM