The desperate chase for quick cash and new status has driven some university students in Akwa Ibom to selling parts of themselves, ranging from sperm, blood to eggs at IVF centres.
The biting hardships pervading many poor homes have undoubtedly put serious pressure on youths to go extra mile to making both ends meet, according to a report by Leadership.
The students engage in selling what they refer to as “body resources”, including sperm, blood, and eggs , which are in high demand at In-Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) centres.
At the University of Uyo (UNIUYO), town campus, along Ikpa Road, students openly lament how socio-economic challenges are impacting their education, yet the quest for quick wealth and status is pushing many beyond the limits of morality and self-preservation.t
But, findings by Straightnews online show that the Akwa Ibom State government’s payment of paltry bursary award for students in higher institutions) has thrown many students into financial challenges.
For example, the government pays ₦20,000 to general students in public/non-private tertiary institutions in Akwa Ibom.
₦30,000 is paid to students in professional or specialised courses (such as Law, Medicine, Engineering, Agriculture, Education) in public/non-private tertiary institutions.
₦250,000 is paid to undergraduate students with disabilities, while postgraduate students with disabilities collect ₦300,000 yearly.
However, checks by LEADERSHIP Weekend at several higher institutions in Akwa Ibom State reveal that it is not just poverty driving students into desperate measures, as some decent and financially stable students are also caught in this dangerous web.
This trend is less about mere survival and more about the toxic culture of competition, peer pressure, and distorted values that have seeped into campus life.
While hardship plays a role, it cannot be the sole excuse for choices that risk lives and futures.
The harsh truth is that some students, even those who are not the poorest, are willingly selling their bodies and dignity, trading parts of themselves at IVF centres , in a reckless gamble driven by greed and desperation to “keep up” or get ahead.
This is a dangerous spiral that threatens to destroy the very foundation of youth potential in Akwa Ibom and beyond.
Fielding questions from our correspondent, a student, Eno Uffot, lamented, “I nearly abandoned my programme last session because I couldn’t afford to register my courses. My parents are retired and depend on their meager monthly stipends.”
He added, “It was only by the grace of God that a councillor representing my ward in Oruk Anam local government area stepped in to help me with one session’s school fees.”
Upon further investigation, our correspondent discovered that many students, along with other youths, resort to sharp practices including cultism, armed robbery, and other violent crimes to survive the harsh realities they face.
Other calm, gentle, and secretive students, according to sources at Akwa Ibom State University (AKSU), Ikot Akpaden campus in Mkpat Enin LGA, run rings of internet fraudsters, popularly known as “Yahoo boys.”
A 300-level Biochemistry student at the University of Uyo (UNIUYO) explained, “It’s an easy way to make money in just a few sessions and walk away, rather than risk engaging in armed robbery, kidnapping, internet fraud, or other scams where you could be caught and face the law.”
Another student involved in the practice added, “We use the proceeds to pay for rent, school fees, settle some courses, and cover other personal expenses.”
A senior nursing officer at Ikot Ekpene LGA General Hospital noted that the heavy patronage of IVF centres by childless couples and single women desperate to have children before menopause is driving the growing demand across the state.
“The high volume of clients has led several medical consultants to operate IVF centres as private businesses within their clinics, even while working for government institutions at both state and federal levels,” the officer explained.
Similarly, a senior medic at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH) who pleaded not to be named stated, “Some of my colleagues run these centres to supplement their meager government salaries with additional income.”
The senior medic blamed many sharp practices and other unwholesome acts by medical professionals on what he called the “poor reward system for medical workers in Akwa Ibom.”
“We have baby factories across the hinterlands of the state, where nurses, midwives, and other workers collude to operate theatres where young girls are groomed and artificially inseminated with sperm and eggs bought specifically from young men and incubated.
“Some are impregnated directly by young boys, who may be thrilled by the offer of free sex from human trafficking syndicates, which pay them after impregnating the girls.
“The victims, mostly young girls, are carefully carried through the gestational period until they deliver the babies and are paid off, while the babies are traded to those in need. We have captured many of them, prosecuted the perpetrators, and handed the victims over to NAPTIP for family reunification,” a senior police operative explained.
“But are those indulging in trading vital resources from their bodies aware of the long-term consequences beyond the quick cash? He added.
Aside from being offensive to the natural birth process, Christendom has expressed deep concern that the youth, who make up the most active segment of the population remain unaware of the harm this practice inflicts on their bodies, which could seriously hinder their personal development.
While Professor Idongesit Patrick Solomon, a specialist in Animal Reproductive Physiology at UNIUYO, views the practice as a legitimate solution to fertility challenges in both humans and animals, Catholic clergy strongly oppose it.
They urge childless couples to consider adoption rather than resorting to artificial methods of parenthood.
In many government and private hospitals, the sale of blood by less-privileged youths has become a common survival tactic amid harsh economic conditions, presenting itself as a seemingly legal way out of hardship.
More alarmingly, a senior medical consultant, who preferred to remain anonymous, revealed that the practice of selling blood, sperm, and eggs has become widespread among young people, particularly university students, raising urgent ethical and health concerns.
Many young people resort to selling vital resources from their bodies because times are truly tough. Some students cannot pay their school fees because they have lost their parents, while others rely on retired relatives or single mothers struggling without steady jobs or stable income.
“But what we discovered in some cases is shocking, yet, in a way, fortunate for them,” said a medical professional. “Many come here believing that because they look healthy, their bodies are fine. But when we screened their blood, we found that most were unaware of their actual health status, having never undergone regular health checks or tests.
Alarmingly, many were found to be infected with various ailments, including HIV/AIDS, while others showed symptoms of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).”
“So, what we do in such cases is set these individuals aside for counseling and advise them to undergo antiretroviral treatment, which is available for free,” explained a senior nursing officer who runs a private clinic in Uyo.
He added that, “Many break down emotionally at first, but we counsel them that these ailments no longer mean a death sentence, provided they strictly adhere to the medication regimen.”
Also critical of the booming trade, the NMA chairman in the State, Dr. Aniekan Peter, admitted the unwholesome practices have become the order of the day, but warned that such illegalities are intolerable in the system.
“There’s a law in place against such practices. Donations of human resources whether blood, sperm and egg should be voluntary and not traded off for cash,” he explained.
He, therefore, warned of drastic consequences for those engaging in such illicit practices, urging a rethink rethink as laws against such practices would be activated to publish offenders.
LEADERSHIP Weekend warns that this rampant exploitation of vulnerable youths by some unscrupulous medical personnel is a betrayal of the very oath sworn to protect and heal. By preying on desperate students and young people, often unaware of the long-term health consequences, these practitioners not only endanger lives but also fuel a dangerous cycle of abuse and exploitation.
This reprehensible behaviour demands urgent condemnation and decisive action from regulatory bodies and government authorities.
Medical professionals must be reminded that their role is to safeguard health and dignity, not to capitalize on hardship for personal gain. The time has come for strict oversight, harsh penalties for offenders, and comprehensive education to protect these young minds from being reduced to mere sources of bodily commodities.
If left unchecked, this exploitation will continue to haunt the futures of countless youths, turning hopes of a better life into tragic tales of pain, regret, and broken dreams. The government, health regulators, and society at large must rise now to stem this tide before more lives are irreparably damaged.
Catholic Bishops Alert the growing trend
Catholic Bishops in Nigeria raised alarm over what they described as the abuse of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) treatment, warning that even university students now sell their eggs and sperm to fertility clinics for money.
The warning came on Sunday, September 14 at the opening session of the 2nd 2025 plenary of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), held at the Catholic Diocese of Ikot Ekpene in Obot Akara, Akwa Ibom State.
The President of CBCN, Archbishop Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, identified four key issues of concern to the Church: the erosion of education in the country, abuse of IVF treatment among couples, oil exploration in the Niger Delta, and environmental degradation.
Ugorji called on dioceses and religious congregations to benchmark their schools against national minimum standards and ensure their institutions meet the requirements recently issued by the Federal Government.
“Now that the government has issued a new national policy on non-state schools to set national minimum standards, we want to look into the erosion of educational standards taking place in miracle examination centers across the country, where examination malpractice is facilitated in the final examinations conducted by WAEC and NECO, respectively. These centers undermine the integrity of the education system in Nigeria and should be called to order,” he said.
Turning to the rise of fertility clinics across the country, the Archbishop cautioned that while some are run by qualified professionals, many are in the hands of unlicensed practitioners, posing grave dangers to clients.
“Though some of them are run by professionals, many are manned by unqualified and unlicensed practitioners, making clients who patronize them risk financial exploitation, medical complications, permanent infertility and even death. This situation urgently calls for government’s regulation and ethical guidelines.” he explained.
On the moral concerns of IVF among Catholic faithful, Ugorji expressed worry that financial desperation is pushing students into selling their reproductive material.
He said, “Even university students sell their eggs and sperms to fertility clinics as commodities for IVF procedures in the quest for money. It is therefore important to draw their attention to the teaching of the Church which considers IVF greatly immoral.
“Apart from its separation of the unitive and procreative aspect of the marital act, the Church teaches that each human being and each human embryo has an inherent dignity and a right to life and opposes any procedure that commodifies it or leads to its disposal or uses it for its verification,” he added.
