African Students In Ukraine, Russia Caught In Diplomatic Spat

Thousands of foreign students are caught up in the crisis in Ukraine, where Russia sent invading forces early Thursday.

According to a report by a Nigerian newspaper website citing data from Ukraine’s Ministry of Education and Sciences, Ukraine had more than 76,500 international students as of 2020.

But Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs website said the country has more than 240 universities, drawing international students from more than 150 countries every year.

Africans account for at least a fifth of Ukraine’s international students.

Since the Russian invasion, some of African leaders have started taking measures to evacuate their students and nationals while advising them to remain vigilant and be responsible for their security.

Leaving the conflict area has become rather difficult as Ukrainian authorities closed at least three of the country’s airports to commercial traffic as of late Wednesday.

According to local reports, major roads and highways have been clogged with vehicles fleeing major cities.

The National Union of Ghana Students on Wednesday issued a statement urging the federal government in Accra “to accelerate efforts in ensuring the safety of all Ghanaian students” in Ukraine and Russia.

The student union asked that students be evacuated from Ukraine’s eastern provinces, as well as from Russia, “as the country may pose an overall hostile environment to our students.”

On Thursday, Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs posted a statement on social media that it would help facilitate Nigerians’ evacuation as soon as airports reopen. More than 4,000 Nigerians are studying in Ukraine.

In a related development,Minister of Education and Technical Education, Tarek Shawqi, said that the number of Egyptian students in the pre-university stage is less than 50 in Russia and less than 10 in Ukraine.

Posting on his Facebook page, Shawqi said these students’ examinations will be postponed and they are welcome to join Egyptian schools if they choose to come back home.