Richard Montgomery, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, clarified that the UK government’s recent policy regarding foreign student visas is primarily intended to alleviate the strain on social services for scholars.
In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja, Montgomery emphasized that the policy does not specifically aim to discourage Nigerian students from pursuing education in the UK. He highlighted that currently, Nigerians have a 97 percent visa approval rate for studying in the UK.
Montgomery encouraged Nigerians to view the new visa regulations within a broader context, emphasizing that they ultimately have a positive impact on both Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
“Three years ago, there were 20,000 Nigerian students in British higher education institutions, and last year, the number increased to 127,000.
“So, we had a fivefold increase in the number of students from Nigeria coming to UK universities.
“We are delighted that UK universities continue to attract the best and brightest from Nigeria.
“And in the wider context, last year, the UK granted three million new UK visas of various types including students and other visitors.
“Nigerians alone received 325,000 of those 3 million visas.
“So more than 10 per cent of the visas from the UK are to Nigerian citizens which is fantastic.
“It goes back to the fact that the UK and Nigeria have strong people-to-people links.
“The policy change is about people who are doing non-research degrees coming to the UK as undergraduates, or for a one-year master’s degree programme, and who decide to bring their dependents.
“We have had a very significant rise in the number of people coming from all around the world, not just from Nigeria.
“This has caused some strain on the UK.
“Sometimes it is difficult to find good accommodation as a student and there is real pressure on housing and social services for students.
“If you looked at it three years ago, only 1,500 dependants of students were coming to the UK from Nigeria, but now it was 52,000 last year.
“I am just trying to put it in proper context, that this is an adjustment.
“The words that are being used in the media to describe the situation are misrepresenting. We are making an adjustment that enables us to manage the demands on services in university towns and elsewhere.
“Nigerians are very successful in acquiring visas. We have a 97 per cent approval rate and so that is the big context,” Montgomery said.
He expressed the UK’s pride in its world-renowned research institutes and higher education system, which consistently rank among the top hundred universities globally. He highlighted the welcoming nature of these institutions towards students pursuing education in the UK. Moreover, he firmly believed that Nigerian students would greatly benefit from the international exposure and valuable networks that studying in the UK can offer.
In May, the UK Home Office announced a new policy stating that starting from January 2024, undergraduate and master’s students would no longer be permitted to bring their dependents with them to the UK. However, this restriction does not apply to students enrolled in research programs.
NAN
