Naira free fall: CBN blames rising number of Nigerians schooling abroad, medical tourism

Nigerians spent over $40 billion to access education and healthcare abroad between 2010 and 2020, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Oluyemi Cardoso, disclosed yesterday, noting that the high number of Nigerians in foreign schools and medical tourism are two of the major factors putting pressure on the naira.

   
He made this disclosure while appearing before the House of Representatives for the sectoral debate on the economy. According to the bank chief, the demand for dollars by these students and those travelling for medicals abroad is hurting the naira. While foreign education expenses amounted to $28.65 billion, the CBN governor said medical treatment abroad incurred around $11.01 billion, an amount that surpasses the total current foreign exchange reserves of the apex bank.
   
The sectoral debate/dialogue is an initiative of the 10th House of Representatives as part of its periodic Policy Brief Series. In attendance also were Minister of Finance, Wale Edun; Minister of Budget and Planning, Atiku Bagudu; and Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue (FIRS), Zacch Adedeji. 
   
Quoting recent data from UNESCO’s Institute of Statistics, Cardoso said the number of Nigerian students abroad increased from less than 15,000 in 1998 to over 71,000 in 2015. According to him, by 2018, the figure had reached 96,702 students and is presently estimated to be above 100,000 students.

   
“Another report projects the number of Nigerian students studying abroad to exceed 100,000 by 2022. Given this data, it’s crucial to highlight that between 2010 and 2020, foreign education expenses amounted to a substantial $28.65 billion, as per the CBN’s publicly available Balance of Payments Statistics. Similarly, medical treatment abroad has incurred around $11.01 billion in costs during the same period.  The 10th House of Representatives launched the sectoral debate/dialogue as a part of its ongoing Policy Brief Series. Additionally present were Zacch Adedeji, the chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Atiku Bagudu, the minister of budget and planning, and Wale Edun, the minister of finance.
Cardoso stated that the number of Nigerian students studying overseas rose from less than 15,000 in 1998 to over 71,000 in 2015, using current data from UNESCO’s Institute of Statistics. He claims that the number increased to 96,702 students by 2018 and is currently projected to be higher than 100,000 students.
According to a different forecast, by 2022, there would be more than 100,000 Nigerian students studying overseas. In light of these figures, it’s important to note that between 2010 and 2020, the cost of overseas education wasa substantial $28.65 billion, according to the CBN’s Balance of Payments Statistics that are available to the public. Similarly, during the same time period, the cost of receiving medical care overseas has increased by almost $11.01 billion