Federal Government sheds light on BEA scholarship situation, confirms no plans for revival

The Federal Ministry of Education has provided clarification on the inclusion of the Bilateral Education Agreement (BEA) Scholarship in the 2026 national budget, stating that it does not signify a reinstatement of new foreign scholarship awards under the programme, according to Dr Tunji Alausa, Minister of Education.

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This clarification was made necessary by public concerns and online reports suggesting a contradiction between the government's earlier decision to discontinue the scheme and its appearance in the current budget, prompting Dr Alausa to issue a statement through Folasade Boriowo, Director, Press and Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Education, on Friday in Abuja.

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Dr Alausa explained that the allocation for the BEA Scholarship originated from the 2025 national budget, which had already been passed and signed into law before the federal government halted the processing of new BEA scholarship awards around April and May 2025.

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He noted that under Nigeria's budgeting framework, provisions contained in an already approved budget cannot be removed retroactively, which means that the BEA component remained part of the 2025 budget structure.

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The minister further stated that the 2026 budget is largely a roll-over of the 2025 fiscal plan, with about 30 per cent retained from the previous year and 70 per cent projected into the current cycle.

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As a result, all existing budget lines, including those relating to the BEA scholarship, were carried forward as part of the standard fiscal process, according to Dr Alausa.

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The minister emphasized that the continued appearance of the BEA allocation in the budget document is purely procedural and does not signify the resumption of new scholarship awards.

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He pointed out that any adjustment to the BEA budget line captured in the 2026 Appropriation Act could only be effected through an approved virenment, after which the allocation would be realigned in line with current government policies and priorities.

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Dr Alausa reassured that Nigerian students currently benefiting from the BEA scholarship abroad would continue to receive full government support in line with existing commitments.

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He urged the public to disregard misleading interpretations of budget figures that do not reflect the technical realities of budget formulation and roll-over practices.