As a result of the derecognition of universities in Republique du Benin and Togo last week by the Nigerian government as a result of certificate racketeering, the institutions in these two neighbouring countries are set to lose about N7.5billion which they make annually from their Nigerian students, findings have shown.
Recall that the Federal Ministry of Education on Tuesday suspended the evaluation and accreditation of degree certificates from universities in the two countries following investigation by an undercover reporter alleging an institution of trading certificate for money.
The reporter who wrote the story revealed how he obtained a degree certificate in Mass Communication from the institution in six weeks without attending any classes or writing an examination.
However, the President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) in Benin Republic Ugochukwu Favour while granting interview on Channels TV put the number of Nigerians studying in tertiary institutions in that country alone at 15,000.
Findings show that institutions in the two countries charge tuition fees ranging between N50,000 and N500,000 per annum.
The tuition fees exclude application form, accommodation, textbooks and living expenses.
Checks also reveal that to attract Nigerians to their institutions, many of the universities teach in both English and French
They also peg their fees in Naira as a means to accomodate Nigerian students.
More checks also show that some of them have accounts in Nigerian banks into which students could pay.
