Tinubu’s govt quietly sends Nigerian high school graduates to suicide drone factories in Russia

President Bola Tinubu’s administration okayed a secret scholarship programme seeking the enrolment of Nigerian secondary school graduates into suicide drone factories in Russia, People Gazette can report.
A 2023 scholarship advertisement released by the Federal Ministry of Education and seen by The Gazette on Friday sought high school graduates interested in joining a vocational training project at Alabuga Polytechnic College in Russia.
“This is to inform all qualified Nigerian candidates of ages 18-22, holding O’Level certificates, that the Special Economic Zone of Alabuga, Yelabuzhsky District, Republic of Tatarstan, Russian Federation, offers admission and vocational training project ‘Alabuga Start’ in Alabuga Polytech College for the 2023/2024 Academic Session,” read the advertisement.
The programmes listed for vocational training include industrial robotics, microelectronics, industrial automation, BIM design, and Chemistry, among others.
Alabuga, known to be the largest and most successful special economic zone of industrial and production type in Russia, houses factories where Iranian-designed suicide drones are produced for the Russian military. The factories started producing drones shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
A 2025 Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crimes report revealed that over 300 women between 18 and 22 years were recruited from around the world, mostly from Africa and Latin America, allegedly under the guise of a “work-study programme,” and ended up working in the drone factories in Alabuga.
According to The Associated Press, some of the African women recruited into the programme in the name of hospitality and catering toiled in factories to make weapons of war, assembling thousands of Iranian-designed attack drones to be launched into Ukraine.
“To fill an urgent labour shortage in wartime Russia, the Kremlin has been recruiting women aged 18-22 from places like Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria, as well as the South Asian country of Sri Lanka. The drive is expanding to elsewhere in Asia as well as Latin America,” wrote AP in an interview with victims published last year.
It added, “That has put some of Moscow’s key weapons production in the inexperienced hands of about 200 African women who are working alongside Russian vocational students as young as 16 in the plant in Tatarstan’s Alabuga Special Economic Zone, about 1,000 kilometres (600 miles) east of Moscow.”
Ukraine repeatedly targeted the location where the drones were being manufactured, resulting in the injury of a lot of young Africans working there on cheap labour.
The programme had seen Russia making suicide drones for Iran, which were allegedly used to attack Israel and any other interests of the United States.
Amid the escalating Israel-Gaza conflict and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Russia’s relationship with Israel has become increasingly strained, with President Vladimir Putin backing away from his relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu following the Hamas attack on Israel in 2023.
As of the time of this report, presidential aide Bayo Onanuga has not responded to a request seeking comments on whether Nigeria, under Mr Tinubu, has abandoned the country’s long-held non-aligned stance and sided with Russia against the United States and Israel.
We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.
More from Peoples Gazette

Agriculture
FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology
The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Politics
Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku
“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

States
Governor Aiyedatiwa vows continued healthcare funding in Ondo
The governor said the commitment would be pursued with increased vigour and passion.

States
Participating in household chores won’t diminish your masculinity, Nasarawa residents tell men
They maintained that house chores should be seen as shared responsibilities rather than solely reserved duties for women.

States
Cross River assembly passes rural access roads authority bill
It was later referred to the House Committee on Transport and Marine Services for further legislative procedures.

Showbiz
Comedian Russell Brand pleads not guilty to rape, sexual assault
The allegations against Brand are said to have taken place against four women between 1999 and 2005.

Education
Zaria poly staff threaten strike, issue two-week ultimatum
The unions are demanding, among other things, the implementation of the requisite salary structure for academic and non-academic staff.

Showbiz
NAPTIP summons Speed Darlington over alleged rape of 15-year-old girl
NAPTIP emphasised that Speed Darlington’s failure to honour the invitation could result in further legal action.