{"id":102640,"date":"2025-11-10T02:22:00","date_gmt":"2025-11-10T02:22:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=102640"},"modified":"2025-11-10T02:22:00","modified_gmt":"2025-11-10T02:22:00","slug":"ghanaian-scholars-in-uk-face-imminent-deportation-over-unpaid-fees-48-months-of-stipends-in-arrears","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=102640","title":{"rendered":"Ghanaian scholars in UK face imminent deportation over unpaid fees, 48 months of stipends in arrears"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Government-sponsored PhD students in the United Kingdom are facing the grim reality of deportation and withdrawal from their academic programmes over unpaid tuition fees and stipends that have been in arrears for up to 48 months.<\/p>\n

In a press release dated Thursday, November 9, the executives of the Ghanaian PhD cohort in the UK revealed that the situation has reached a breaking point, with at least ten students already excluded or withdrawn from their universities. <\/p>\n

\u201cAbout 10 of our members are currently excluded or withdrawn from their studies due to non-payment of tuition fees and are awaiting potential notification from the Home Office for their deportation,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n

The students disclosed that the arrears have crippled their ability to study and live decently. <\/p>\n

\u201cSeveral of our colleagues have been evicted from their homes, while some are facing legal proceedings for defaulting on several months of unpaid rent,\u201d they lamented. <\/p>\n

The group said many of its members have gone for months \u2014 and in some cases years \u2014 without receiving stipends, which range between \u00a31,023 and \u00a31,200 a month. \u201cSome of our members are owed as much as 48 months in stipends. <\/p>\n

This means that, for some, they have not received any payment from the Ghanaian government since the start of their PhD programme.\u201d<\/p>\n

Currently, around 110 students sponsored by the Ghana Scholarships Secretariat (GSS) are enrolled in PhD programmes across UK universities. <\/p>\n

The group said the crisis extends beyond tuition arrears, as \u201c36 of our members are urgently in need of renewal letters with no solution in sight.\u201d Without these renewal letters, students are unable to re-enrol or continue their research.<\/p>\n

The statement also described how unpaid tuition has led to serious academic and immigration challenges. <\/p>\n

\u201cSome have finished their courses but cannot graduate. For those who managed to attend their graduations, they have no certificate due to pending tuition fees,\u201d the students said. <\/p>\n

Others who travelled to Ghana for data collection have reportedly been refused re-entry to the UK \u201cdue to outstanding tuition fees owed to the universities and also the Home Office\u2019s notice of deportation issues against their profiles.\u201d<\/p>\n

The scholars noted that while the GSS has made \u201crecent efforts\u201d to settle payments for some students, these efforts remain \u201cwoefully inadequate.\u201d <\/p>\n

Their data shows that \u201can estimated number of 30 students have had absolutely no payment made towards their 2024\/25 tuition fees,\u201d and universities have blocked several from re-enrolling or accessing their student portals. <\/p>\n

The group estimates that at least \u00a3400,000 is required to sustain their studies for the 2025\/26 academic year.<\/p>\n

They also drew attention to the lack of transparency and administrative lapses in managing the scholarship scheme. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe have acknowledged the challenges confronting the current management of the GSS and the government, stemming from the ad hoc administration of the scholarships by the past management. <\/p>\n

However, we are of the firm belief that students should not face the consequences for administrative errors and indiscretions made by public officials.\u201d<\/p>\n

The scholars emphasised that despite their frustrations, they recognise the government\u2019s broader efforts to reform the scholarship system. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe note with confidence the efforts being employed by the government to reform the scholarship scheme to ensure transparency and fairness in the awards,\u201d they said. <\/p>\n

\u201cOur group includes individuals from all backgrounds, including notable citizens who may not be affiliated with any of Ghana\u2019s dominant political parties.\u201d<\/p>\n

Appealing directly to the new UK High Commissioner and President John Dramani Mahama, the students pleaded for urgent intervention. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe are therefore appealing to the UK High Commissioner and President John Dramani Mahama to, as a matter of urgency and priority, assist in securing an immediate resolution and redress to the issues, as has been done in respect of other statutory liabilities he inherited from the past administration.\u201d<\/p>\n

The statement closed with a note of hope, expressing faith that their plight will not go unheard: \u201cWe hope and believe that we shall receive positive feedback, knowing that these matters are in their hearts.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"GhanaianGovernment-sponsored PhD students in the United Kingdom are facing the grim reality of deportation and withdrawal from their academic programmes over unpaid tuition fees and stipends that have been in arrears for up to 48 months.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[491,12213,10,9,1887],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-102640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-education","category-ghanaian-phd-students-in-uk","category-politics","category-popular","category-top-story"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=102640"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102640\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=102640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=102640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=102640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}