The Federal Government has announced plans to introduce a bonding framework that will ensure all students sponsored under government scholarship schemes, particularly those studying abroad, return to Nigeria to contribute to national development upon completion of their studies.

Speaking during the TETFund National Town Hall Meeting in Abuja, the Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Sonny Echono, explained that the initiative aligns with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s directive for ministries and agencies to develop mechanisms that protect the government’s investment in human capital development. He said the framework would prevent cases where scholars refuse to return home after completing their programmes, a trend that has deprived the nation of its expected human resource benefits.

Echono noted that the policy will make it mandatory for all beneficiaries of government-funded scholarships to sign binding agreements committing them to return to Nigeria and serve for a specific period. He emphasized that the framework would be structured to identify and target priority sectors of the economy where the nation needs skilled manpower, ensuring that scholars’ expertise is applied in areas that drive growth and competitiveness.

The move underscores the Tinubu administration’s commitment to repositioning Nigeria’s education and research landscape by ensuring that investments in training abroad translate into measurable benefits for the nation’s socio-economic advancement.