The Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, has come under public scrutiny following claims made by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, regarding the cost of his children’s education abroad.
According to Dangote, Ahmed allegedly spent about $5 million on the secondary education of his children in Switzerland. Dangote described the expenditure as “economic sabotage and corruption,” questioning how a public official could afford such costs.
Dangote claimed that Ahmed’s four children: Faisal Farouk, Farouk Jr., Ashraf Farouk, and Farhana Farouk attended prestigious Swiss secondary schools over a six-year period. The schools named include Montreux School, Aiglon College, Institut Le Rosey, and La Garenne International School.
He further alleged that the annual cost of tuition, airfare, and upkeep was approximately $200,000 per child, amounting to $800,000 per year for all four children. Over six years, the combined cost of living expenses and air travel was estimated at $1.2 million per child, totalling $4.8 million. Dangote stated that the overall cost of tuition and upkeep for the children reached $5 million.
In addition, Dangote alleged that the children’s tertiary education expenses including tuition, accommodation, airfare, and other costs averaged $125,000 per year over a four-year period. This, he claimed, amounted to $500,000 per child, totalling $2 million for all four.
He also stated that Faisal Farouk recently completed an MBA at Harvard University in 2025, with tuition estimated at $150,000 and an additional $60,000 spent on upkeep, travel, and other incidentals, bringing the total cost to $210,000.
Dangote concluded by stating that Nigerians deserve transparency regarding the source of funds used for such expenditures, particularly at a time when many parents in Ahmed’s home state of Sokoto reportedly struggle to pay school fees as low as ₦10,000.
