Six Jigawa students relocated to India from Sudan have completed their studies and returned home

SIX Jigawa State students who were relocated to India and Cyprus from Sudan when fighting broke out there have now completed their studies and returned home as qualified graduates ready to start work.

When war broke out in Sudan earlier this year, Jigawa State had a total of 195 students studying there on scholarship. To enable them complete their studies, the state government quickly found them alternative universities in India and Cyprus and sent them there so they could complete their studies.

Speaking while receiving the returning six out of the 10 students studying in India today, Saidu Magaji, the executive secretary of the Jigawa State Scholarship Board, said that four of them earned a first-class degree in the field of nursing. After the tedious processes of removing the students  from Sudan, the Jigawa State government ensured that they returned to Nigeria without any hitches.

Mr Magaji said: “Even in Nigeria, upon their arrival in Abuja, the government decided that they should not be taken to Jigawa on buses because they were still dealing with the trauma of how they escaped from Sudan. So, we chartered an aircraft that took them straight to Jigawa Airport, where we also provided them with transport fares to their respective homes.”

He noted that due to the 12-point human agenda of the government of Governor Umar Namadi, he directed the scholarship board to secure admissions for the students. As a result, 185 of them were admitted to Near East University in Cyprus and each was recently paid N4.5m for their residence permits, health insurance and living allowances.

In addition, Mr Magaji explained that of the 10 students taken to Integral University in India, four are still there, with three studying pharmacy sciences and one studying civil engineering. Meanwhile, the six students who graduated and returned to Nigeria include four females who graduated with first-class degrees with a Bachelor of Nursing Sciences, while the remaining two male students graduated in the field of industrial chemistry.

Mr Magaji added: “Already, we have approved N4bn for living allowances, tuition fees, residence permits and other financial needs. We have also signed a bond with the students to serve in Jigawa for some time, along with the 185 students in Cyprus.”

Aisha Muhammad, who graduated with a first-class degree in nursing sciences, said: “After the trauma of Sudan, we have now completed our studies successfully and are ready to serve our state like never before.”

Abdullahi Isa, who graduated with a degree in industrial chemistry, said that their studies in India were wonderful because the people there were so accommodating and their studies went smoothly without any attacks or hostility. Recalling how they suffered while crossing the borders of Sudan, he stated that if not for the timely intervention of the Jigawa State government, their education would have been over.