Nigeria’s Medical and Dental Council says it will not recognise degrees from Ukrainian universities obtained since the start of the country’s war with Russia.
The regulator for professional health services in Nigeria will also not accept medical and dental programmes offered online.
The announcement follows the conversion of in-person courses to online courses for many students who are studying in Ukraine and are yet to complete their programmes.
Some of the students who spoke to the BBC say it is a huge blow to their studies and careers, especially for those who have spent more than five years studying and only have a few months left until graduation.
They call the policy discriminatory, arguing that students who studied online during the pandemic were allowed to graduate and practice. The Students have also criticised the government for failing to keep Nigerian universities open amid recent rolling strikes by lecturers, forcing them to study elsewhere.
Hundreds of Nigerian students were evacuated from Ukraine following Russia’s invasion.
The Medical and Dental Council, which regulates Nigerian doctors, dentists and alternative medicine practitioners recently rejected online training from other countries, saying it falls short of acceptable standards.
