By: Kebba Ansu Manneh
Professor Pierre Gomez, Minister of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology (MoHERST), has stated that the majority of Gambian students in China facing tuition payment issues and potential expulsion traveled to the country on their own initiative, rather than through government-sponsored scholarships.
The minister’s comments come in response to a recent press statement from the Association of Gambian Students in China (GSIC), which highlighted the risk of school expulsion and deportation due to unpaid tuition fees attributed to delays by MoHERST.
In an exclusive interview with The Alkamba Times ( TAT), Professor Gomez emphasized that not all Gambian students in China are affected. Those on official bilateral scholarships arranged directly with the Chinese government remain unaffected, as China covers all their expenses.
“The majority of those students are not part of the students whom we have selected from our end here (MoHERST), and giving them a scholarship. The majority of them went to China on their own and not on Government sponsorship,” Professor Gomez said.
He explained that many affected students initially enrolled privately, either self-funded or with promises of family support that later fell through. This group subsequently appealed to the Gambian Embassy in Beijing for assistance.
Following engagements between MoHERST and the embassy, the ministry incorporated these students into its scholarship program on humanitarian grounds. Professor Gomez noted that MoHERST has already paid millions of dalasis to clear their arrears up to the 2025 academic year.
“What we did not pay for is the 2025-2026 academic year, and that one we did not pay for because we did not have money to pay for it now. We did not pay because the Ministry of Finance did not give us the money. If we receive from Finance, definitely we will pay,” he added.
The minister expressed disappointment over the students’ public protests, describing them as a “smear campaign” that overlooks the ministry’s prior support.
“By the way, we were just helping them, but I am really very disappointed that they approached us and we really helped them, and now they decided to write protest letters to all media houses in the country, tarnishing our image… forgetting to tell the whole world that they went on their own to China,” Professor Gomez said.
He stressed that the affected students have not been fair to MoHERST and reaffirmed that funds will be released to settle the outstanding bills once allocated by the Ministry of Finance.
The GSIC’s statement had warned of imminent terminations of studies for government-sponsored students due to arrears, underscoring broader concerns about the sustainability of overseas scholarships amid funding challenges.
MoHERST continues to manage various scholarship programs, including bilateral arrangements with China, while cautioning against unauthorized private enrollments abroad. The ministry urges prospective students to pursue opportunities through official channels to avoid similar predicaments.
