Nigeria, May 8 -- The Nigerian government has officially discontinued the Bilateral Education Agreement (BEA) Scholarship Programme, which for years funded Nigerian students to study in foreign countries.

The Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, disclosed this in a statement by the ministry's spokesperson, Folashade Boriowo, on Wednesday.

Mr Alausa explained that the decision followed a thorough policy review aimed at consolidating national investment in domestic tertiary institutions.

"Every course Nigerians travel abroad to study through the BEA is now available and often of higher quality within our own universities and polytechnics," he said.

"It is no longer justifiable to fund overseas studies with public resources when local al...