President Bola Tinubu has offered scholarships to students from St Lucia and other Caribbean countries to study in Nigerian universities, despite the alarming number of out-of-school children in the country.

Mr Tinubu, during his trip to St Lucia, announced that “the scholarship programme for students from the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) to study in Nigerian universities will commence in the next academic year.”

According to a statement on Monday, the president also said a proposal for visa waivers for holders of diplomatic and official passports from OECS member states is also on course.

Although the number of students from the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States to benefit from Mr Tinubu’s scholarship offer is unspecified, it comes as Nigeria currently has about 18.3 million out-of-school children.

According to UNICEF, 10.2 million children at the primary level and 8.1 million at the junior secondary school (JSS) level are out of school in Nigeria.

Also, Mr Tinubu’s scholarship offer coincides with the prevailing unprecedented economic hardship, high cost of living and rising poverty resulting from his economic policies.

Upon his assumption of office on May 29, 2023, Mr Tinubu announced the immediate removal of fuel subsidy and later exchange rate unification. The twin policies have resulted in economic hardship.

With inflation at 23.7 per cent, a drop from 34 per cent after rebasing the economy under Mr Tinubu, Nigeria recorded the largest increase in acute food insecurity globally in 2024, according to the 2025 Global Report on Food Crises published by the Global Network Against Food Crises in collaboration with the Food Security Information Network and UNICEF.

The International Monetary Fund reported that poverty and food insecurity remained high under Mr Tinubu. The World Bank’s Africa Pulse report of April 2025 also stated that Nigeria, under Mr Tinubu, has the highest number of extremely poor people globally, warning that more Nigerians will be plunged into poverty by 2027.