US$1.5M payback begins in GOAL scholarship scandal

Apr 07, 2026 News

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By Khadidja Ba

(Kaieteur News) – Government has begun recovering US$1.5 million tied to the controversial GOAL scholarship fiasco, with Minister of Public Service Zulfikar Ally confirming that repayments from the International Skill Development Corporation (ISDC) are now underway.

“I know they have been repaying, I don’t know if the full amount has been repaid…they have started repaying”. This comes after the collapse of a fraudulent scholarship arrangement that left hundreds of students in academic limbo last year.

Ally had assured the National Assembly in February 2026 that efforts are underway to recover funds paid in connection with a controversial scholarship arrangement after it emerged that students enrolled in a programme purportedly offered through Staffordshire University were not officially registered with that institution. During consideration of the budget estimates in the National Assembly at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, Liliendaal, APNU Member of Parliament Terrence Campbell questioned Ally, who has oversight responsibility for the scholarship programme, about what steps had been taken to recoup monies paid to a private intermediary, the International Skill Development Corporation (ISDC), after it became clear that the courses were not formally affiliated with Staffordshire University.

Campbell told the House that throughout 2025, the issue had become known publicly and asked whether the ministry had initiated action to recover monies paid for student registrations under the disputed arrangement. In response, Ally said he had been in constant engagement with the Permanent Secretary and the Head of the Guyana Online Academy of Learning (GOAL), as well as with other representatives of GOAL, to address the matter. He disclosed then that approximately US$1.5 million is expected to be refunded to government accounts. The controversy surrounding the GOAL-ISDC arrangement first gained national attention following a series of reports in Stabroek News detailing student complaints and correspondence from Staffordshire University denying any formal partnership with GOAL or ISDC.

Staffordshire University had stated it had no agreement with GOAL or ISDC for the programmes being marketed to Guyanese students. The university said courses advertised in association with ISDC were not authorised by Staffordshire. The disclosure triggered uncertainty for hundreds of scholarship recipients who believed they were pursuing accredited UK degrees.

Following the revelation, Staffordshire University was removed as an option for GOAL scholarship awardees. Students who had already commenced programmes were left uncertain about the status of their studies, with many expressing confusion over emails, course materials and online platforms that had referenced the UK institution.

GOAL Director Jacob Opadeyi subsequently acknowledged difficulties in the arrangement and apologised to affected students. He said there had been a breakdown in the relationship between ISDC and Staffordshire University and later announced that GOAL had severed ties with ISDC amid the controversy.

GOAL also indicated that it would seek to protect students’ interests by facilitating transfers to other partner universities. Virtual meetings were held with affected students, and alternative pathways were explored to allow them to continue their studies without losing academic progress. The matter had drawn sharp criticism from opposition parties and sections of civil society. The Alliance For Change (AFC) called for an independent probe into GOAL’s dealings with Staffordshire and ISDC, describing the situation as a serious lapse in oversight. Opposition figures questioned what due diligence had been undertaken before public funds were disbursed and demanded full disclosure of the sums paid and the contractual terms governing the partnership.

The government declined to release details of the agreements signed with ISDC and would not state publicly the total amount of taxpayers’ funds paid to the intermediary. Opposition estimates had suggested that billions of Guyanese dollars may have been channelled through the programme to various partners, with a significant portion potentially going to ISDC.

Students affected by the disruption told sections of the media that they had enrolled in programmes believing they would receive qualifications from Staffordshire University. Some reported inconsistencies in course delivery and concerns about whether their degrees would ultimately be recognised.

Guyanese in the GOAL programme had found themselves caught up in growing questions surrounding ISDC and its role in the GOAL programme which started in 2021. Opadeyi defended the partnership with ISDC, explaining that “ISDC has a relationship with over 20 universities in the UK, and we have been dealing with them for the last three years for other programmes. They are not a stranger to us, and they have fulfilled all of their other obligations with other programmes that we ran with them.” When questioned about the decision to work with a third-party provider instead of approaching universities directly, Opadeyi justified the move, saying that such arrangements with educational agencies are now standard practice, enabling “volume discounts” on tuition fees.

Opadeyi further revealed that GOAL pays tuition fees to ISDC, which then divides the funds with the various universities, but when pressed on how much the government had already paid to ISDC, Opadeyi declined to disclose the amount. He did assure students that, should the programme with the University of Staffordshire fail to continue as planned, the government would be refunded any money already paid to ISDC. However, despite these assurances, many were left questioning the legitimacy of the arrangement.

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• GOAL, scandal, scholarship, Zulfikar Ally

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