A new data from thr Central Bank of Nigeria has revealed what Nigerians spent on medical tourism, foreign education and other personal matters in six months.
According to the data, a hugely sum of $1.58bn was spent on the aforementioned in the first six months of 2023.
The breakdown of the data from CBN’s Balance of Payment compilation spanning the first six months of 2023 showed that Nigerians spent $245.68m on overseas health-related issues, $896.09m on foreign education, and $434.63m on other personal foreign needs.
CBN, in an explanatory note titled, Note D, defined Balance of Payments as “a systematic record of economic and financial transactions for a given period between residents of an economy and non-residents.”
Medical tourism and foreign education have continued to put pressure on foreign exchange demand in the country, according to experts.
Poor health infrastructure has been cited as one of the reasons why Nigerians travel abroad for proper health services.
Recently, the Federal Government allocated N1.33tn to the health sector in its 2024 budget, a 23.15 percent increase from the N1.33tn the sector got in 2023.
Nigerians migrating for education has become a new norm considering the sorry state of the country’s economy and security situation.
Recently, the Open Doors Report, published by the Washington-based Institute of International Education, revealed that the number of Nigerian students studying in the United States rose to 17,640 in the 2022/2023 academic session from the 14,438 that moved in the 2021/2022 session.
In 2022, Nigerians spent about $1.01bn on foreign education in 2022, a 40.36 percent increase from the $720.05m that was spent in 2021.
