Ghanaian students studying in Russia under Government of Ghana scholarships are appealing to the government to pay them their stipends, which have been in arrears for over a year.
The students say the delay in releasing the stipends is affecting their academic performance and making life difficult for them.
Speaking to Citi News, the President of the National Union of Ghanaian Students in Russia, Derick Yamoah Gyasi, said the delay in payment is also making it difficult for the students to access money from home.
“There is an outstanding debt of over a year that is supposed to be paid to students. Our issue now has to do with the relationship between students in Russia and the secretariat who is responsible for the life of students in Russia. The SWIFT system is not working in Russia, so bank transfers are not possible. We are not able to access MoneyGram, Western Union, and all the popular direct money transfer systems that were available in the past. So it becomes difficult to even receive money from home for feeding,” he said.
“The only support we need is the monies that are sent to students to augment their stay here. We have spoken to the Embassy several times and efforts to reach out to the secretariat have proved futile,” he added.