The Federal Government has denied knowledge of a controversial Russian work-study programme linked to the production of military drones used in the war against Ukraine.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Nigeria was not involved in it.

However, a document posted on the website of the Ministry of Education, which had been trending for a while, suggests Nigerian youths were encouraged to apply for the scholarship.

The controversy centres on the Alabuga Special Economic Zone in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia.

The centre is a sprawling industrial hub that came under Ukrainian missile attack on April 23, 2025.

At the heart of the facility’s operations is the production of Iranian-designed suicide drones deployed by Russian forces in their ongoing military campaign.

It is within this zone that a programme dubbed, “Alabuga Start” has emerged as a focal point of concern.

Military job disguised

Marketed as a vocational training scheme for foreign students, the programme has drawn condemnation following revelations that young African women, some allegedly under the age of 18, were recruited under false pretences.

Reports suggest that participants believed they were enrolling in academic and technical training but found themselves working on drone assembly lines under hazardous conditions.

A report by The Economist on Thursday revealed that the young recruits were not informed that their work would contribute directly to Russia’s military effort.

The report aligned with earlier findings by the Associated Press, which in 2024 documented how social media platforms, including YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, had removed several accounts promoting the Alabuga Start programme.

The platforms acted following the exposure of recruitment efforts championed by a school known as Alabuga Polytechnic, which brands itself as a centre for advanced technical education, particularly in drone manufacturing.

The removed accounts had a combined following of over 53,000 users.

Some former workers at the facility told AP that they endured gruelling conditions, long shifts under surveillance, exposure to toxic chemicals, and unmet promises regarding pay and the curriculum.

Four women reported working up to 12 hours per day with irregular days off.

Most of those interviewed expressed dissatisfaction over the wage paid. They revealed that initial promises of a $700 monthly wage were revised down to “over $500” in later communications.

Also, expenses, ranging from airfare and accommodation to medical costs and language lessons, were reportedly deducted from salaries.

Inside Alabuga drone factory

According to a detailed report by the Voice of America, after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, it deepened military ties with Iran, signing a $1.7bn deal that same year to import Iranian-made drones, known as UAVs.

It noted that the drones, initially shipped in disassembled parts, are mass-produced on Russian soil, most notably at the Alabuga Special Economic Zone in Tatarstan.

Originally established in 2006 to attract foreign investment and boost industrial development, Alabuga has since transformed.

Following the invasion, parts of the zone were converted for military use, with satellite imagery revealing the expansion and refurbishment of facilities dedicated to drone production.

The primary focus Is the Shahed-136, a one-way attack drone.

According to leaked documents and reports from the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security, Alabuga aims to produce up to 6,000 drones annually by 2025.

The scholarship

Faced with record-low unemployment and a domestic workforce depleted by war mobilisation and emigration, the factory turned to vocational students and cheap foreign labour.

According to VOA, verified documents show the workforce expanded from fewer than 900 in 2023 to a projected 2,600 by 2025.

Many of the assembly-line workers were initially foreign women, particularly from Central and East Africa, tasked with assembling drones and applying industrial chemicals and paints.

In early 2025, 182 women, mostly from African nations, were recruited, according to the Alabuga Start programme’s Facebook page.

Recruitment drives were held in Uganda, where efforts reportedly extended to orphanages.

Russian officials also visited over two dozen embassies in Moscow to promote the scheme, targeting potential labour from Africa, South America, and Asia.

The factory also draws from Alabuga Polytechnic, a boarding vocational school nearby, where Russian teenagers and Central Asian youth, some as young as 15, are trained in drone manufacturing.

Investigative outlets Protokol and Razvorot also reported complaints of poor working conditions from students.

Life inside complex

Based on the VOA report, foreign recruits live in guarded dormitories with shared kitchens.

Social media posts reveal that entry is controlled by facial recognition, with CCTV monitoring throughout.

Recruits are also said to have been issued local SIM cards but must surrender their phones before entering the drone production zone, a designated military facility.

A worker, who spoke to AP, described the training they received to assemble drones and apply a chemical coating with the texture of yoghurt.

She said the substance caused painful facial irritation and “tiny holes” on her skin. Protective gear was reportedly insufficient or unavailable.

While AP could not identify the exact chemical, Fabian Hinz of the International Institute for Strategic Studies confirmed that such manufacturing processes involve caustic materials.

Nigeria’s connection

The Nigerian link to the programme surfaced after a letter issued by the Federal Ministry of Education’s Federal Scholarship Board went viral.

The letter, bearing official insignia, appeared to invite Nigerian youths to apply for the Alabuga Start programme.

It listed a variety of academic disciplines, including Industrial Automation and Electrical Installation.

Checks by Sunday PUNCH confirmed that the letter was indeed published on the official website of the Federal Scholarship Board under the link titled, “Russia 2022 Special Economic Zone,” giving it a semblance of credibility and prompting questions about possible official endorsement.

The letter on the website read in part, “Scholarship offer from the Special Economic Zone, ‘Alabuga’ Republic of Tatarstan.

“The Embassy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in Russia is notifying Nigerians about the Alabuga Start Programme, which has an offer of one hundred and fifty (150) scholarships to international students to compete for scholarship slots in Alabuga Polytech.

“Alabuga Polytech offers undergraduate programmes in Industrial Robotics, Industrial Automation, Electrical Installation, Laboratory Chemical Analysis, Information Systems and Programming, as well as Maintenance and Repair of Radio Electronic Equipment.

“Successful applicants will be entitled to free accommodation, 20,000 Rubles (about $300) as monthly stipend, transportation allowance, and a guarantee of employment upon completion of studies.

“To be eligible for the programme, applicants must learn 100 Russian words, reach ‘level 1’ in analytics and communication, play a game of ‘Business Cats’, and take part in a face-to-face interview.”

FG denies knowledge

Despite this discovery, the Federal Government denied any connection to the programme.

The spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa, stated, “The ministry is not aware.”

The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission also denied any knowledge of the scheme.

“NiDCOM is not aware at all,” the spokesperson for the commission, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, told Sunday PUNCH.

When contacted, the spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of Education, Folasade Omoboriowo, asked our correspondent to send a text message.

After receiving the message, she declined to comment.

Ukraine, Russia react

However, Ukraine’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Ivan Kholostenko, confirmed that Africans had been identified among those working at the Alabuga drone facility.

Speaking to Sunday PUNCH, Kholostenko warned that any foreign national employed in Russia’s defence sector was at grave risk, given that such sites were legitimate military targets.

He said, “The Ukrainian side drew the attention of our African partners to the fact that the Russian recruitment programme is reportedly being used to recruit African citizens for employment at enterprises engaged in the production of weaponry used in attacks against Ukraine.

“Given that enterprises within Russia’s military-industrial complex constitute legitimate targets for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the employment of African citizens at such facilities places their lives at significant risk.

“As for the strikes, we know of at least one case confirmed by the Ukrainian General Staff, when the Armed Forces of Ukraine struck the Elabuzky district of the Republic of Tatarstan, which happened on April 23, 2025.”

Pressed on whether Ukraine had formally warned the Federal Government, the ambassador declined to disclose the nature of diplomatic communications, citing the sensitivity of bilateral exchanges.

The Embassy of Russia In Nigeria had on May 13 described those criticising the Alabuga programme as pro-westerners, insinuating that some of the writers were paid.

“Rest assured that Russia, which has fought for independence for centuries, respects and values the right of any people to freedom at any point. We support Africa and other countries in the fight against terrorism and the remnants of colonialism, and we also oppose the domination of some countries over others,” it added.

Contacted on the raging controversy, the Russian Ambassador to Nigeria, Andrey Podelyshev, in a brief response to Sunday PUNCH, said, “The Russian Embassy in Nigeria has no information on which factories and plants located in the Russian Federation foreign people are employed, including citizens of African states.”

Nigerians express concern

Meanwhile, Nigerians have expressed outrage over the development, blaming the Federal Government for exposing youths to danger.

An X (formerly Twitter) user, Ibrahim Israel Sasay @humble_izz, claimed that his sister was exposed to poor working conditions and paid a meagre wage at Alabuga.

“My younger sister was there. Thanks to God, she returned safe. She complained about being treated differently from what they told them earlier. They were paid a little token to work in a dangerous place which couldn’t even meet their basic needs. She said their lives were at risk while working in those explosive environments,” Ibrahim said.

Our correspondent could not independently verify ibrahiom’s claim. Sunday PUNCH attempted to get further information from him, but he had yet to reply as of press time.

Another X user, Murtala @Murtalabin, slammed the Federal Government for promoting the scheme.

“This initiative is a weapon manufacturing scheme in Russia, masked as a vocational training project,” he said.

Another X user, Temi @Superpiz said, “It is a failure on their (Nigerian government) path; Ambassador should be having classified intel about that particular programme since. Those students should have been returned home, unless the FG is in complicit with Russia.”

Afolabi @Ahfo wrote, “Nigerian government, sending its citizens to die in Alabuga, Russia. Damn it.”

SK Media @Spaghettikozak said, “If you like being exploited as slave labour for an aggressive war and also getting blown up by Ukrainian drones in response, Alabuga is perfect!”

Ex-envoys urge probe

Reacting to the development, a former Nigerian ambassador to the Philippines, Dr Yemi Farounbi, advised the Federal Government to seek immediate clarification from Russian authorities concerning the welfare and activities of Nigerian citizens participating in the vocational programme.

He stated that whether or not the government was previously aware of the initiative, it had a constitutional duty to protect the lives and property of its citizens.

He said, “First of all, the Federal Government may not have known about it, but as a government responsible for the welfare of Nigerians, it has the right to write to the ambassador of that country and ask questions.

“They should request clarification on the conditions under which Nigerians are living and what exactly they are being used for.

“Because of the bilateral relationship that exists between the two countries, I think that is the first step to be taken. They need to request more information about the safety of Nigerians concerning their activities in line with the stated purpose of the programme.

“If they are not satisfied after receiving a response, then the government can take further action based on the information received.

“Whether they were aware of it or not, because it involves Nigerians, whose lives and property they are constitutionally bound to protect, the government must consider itself involved in the matter.”

Similarly, a former Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, Prof. Bola Akinterinwa, said Russia might be using the scholarship to recruit workers.

He said, “The principles of non-intervention must be well understood. Russia cannot offer anybody a scholarship except through the government structure.

“War creates job opportunities, and as you are in Africa, there are lots of issues with employment.

“Giving scholarships is to increase the number of supporters for Russia. Scholarship is a tool of soft power, and that is what Russia may be doing with that.” (Sunday PUNCH)