Kimberly Olanma Nweze, daughter of Nigeria’s Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, graduated with First Class Honours in Robotics Engineering from Queen Mary University of London on July 25, 2025, a feat celebrated by her father but met with sharp public debate about Nigerian politicians sending their children to study abroad.
Umahi, joined by his wife, Rachel, at the UK ceremony, praised Kimberly’s achievement in a statement reported by Vanguard, noting her as only the second known Nigerian to earn such a degree in robotics, following Silas Adekunle.
However, the decision to educate his daughter overseas has fueled criticism that Nigeria’s leaders lack confidence in the country’s education system, which they are responsible for improving. Nigerians on social media, particularly X, expressed frustration, with users questioning, “Why don’t our leaders fix our universities so their kids can study here?”
This sentiment reflects widespread discontent over the state of public education, plagued by underfunding, strikes, and outdated facilities, as noted in a 2024 UNESCO report citing Nigeria’s education budget at just 5.2% of GDP. Critics argue that politicians, including Umahi, who oversaw infrastructure projects as Ebonyi governor, implicitly admit local universities’ inadequacies by choosing foreign institutions.
While some praised Kimberly’s academic success, others called for reforms to make Nigeria’s schools competitive, pointing to brain drain and the loss of talent abroad, with over 96,000 Nigerian students in UK universities in 2024 alone, according to Study International.
