For many Nigerians, their waking and sleeping thoughts these days are about how to leave the country. Nobody should be blamed for dreaming big and envisioning a rosier and better future.
Japa is helping many families to live a healthier and fulfilled life. A good number of Nigerians who have japa-ed are doing good jobs that not only pay their bills but enable them to send something back home to sustain their relations.
On the flipside, it results in family dislocation as many who relocate abroad do not come back. It is even worse for those who get married there and begin to raise their children. Sometimes, even when their parents die in Nigeria, they only send money for burial and will not be home themselves.
An incident took place in Lagos recently, where children of a deceased woman in a highbrow area of the state was said to have come home at the death of their mother, and packaged her remains and flew same to their base outside the country.
“Well, it depends on their upbringing and the kind of value system their parents have exposed them to. To a great extent, the statement might be true in most cases, but we could have a few exceptions of children who might want to trace and connect their roots,” John Kokome, PR consultant, told BDSunday.
According to him, some of the children might be interested or show some interest at some point or the other in their life, and their parents somewhat became the stumbling block on their way.
“In recent times, we have seen men and women born many years ago abroad trying to find their roots back to Africa and in some cases Nigeria. This might likely be the case with some of the Japa-ed born children in the future,” he said.
According to Kokome, the Japa phenomenon is a symptom of deeper issues plaguing Nigeria. He disclosed that while the allure of foreign lands may seem enticing, the reality is often harsh and unforgiving. “It is essential for policymakers, stakeholders, and individuals to work together to address the root causes of Japa and create opportunities for Nigerian youth to thrive at home.”
In recent years, the term “Japa” has become synonymous with the mass exodus of Nigerian youth seeking greener pastures abroad. While the allure of foreign lands may seem enticing, the reality is often far from the promised land.
Over the years, the Japa phenomenon has been fueled by a combination of factors, including economic instability, lack of opportunities, and social media influence among others.
Nigeria’s struggling economy, marked by inflation, unemployment, and poverty has widen the unemployment gap with limited job prospects, inadequate infrastructure, and poor governance, which has created social imbalance from the proliferation of social media platforms showcasing the seemingly glamorous lives of Nigerians abroad.
Read also: Beyond borders: Addressing the japa syndrome
However, the experience of many migrants who japa-ed is far from the glamour portrayed on social media. Many migrants struggle to secure jobs, often due to lack of relevant skills or work experience. For some, it is about their documentation creating limited access to basic necessities of life abroad.
Because of the lack or inadequate documentation, many are restricted by expensive accommodations, inadequate access to healthcare and other essential services. On the back of this is the cultural shock and loneliness that many have to cope with.
The struggle to adapt to new cultures, languages, and customs, often lead to feelings of isolation that exposes many of these (undocumented) migrants to exploitation and abuse. Furthermore, some migrants fall prey to unscrupulous employers, human traffickers, or other forms of exploitation and are usually not in a place to talk or fight back because of their lack of documentation.
“For many of us left behind in Nigeria – we have been blinded by some of the purported financial inducement we get. But the loneliness and trauma are never quantifiable,” Temilade, a Lagos-based business woman, said.
She told BDSunday that she is the only member of her immediate family left behind in Nigeria. “My mum left us for the UK when we were below 5 years old. Our father waited for some years before deciding to remarry.
“Mum never came back until we were in our 30s; myself and twin-sisters had to live our entire life with grandma. Luckily, mum came home briefly but went back after a few days. Our grandma (her mother died about three years after and Iya-Ibeji didn’t come home) she only sent some money to us.
“As I speak to you; it’s not certain if my brother will ever return home because there is basically nothing left here for him to visit. Our dad is late, so is grandma. Seun that went to the UK for his masters got married over there and I don’t see him coming back here,” she narrated.
According to Temilade, her twin sister (Tade) went to the UK with her daughters but when she came to Nigeria briefly in 2023 – the children were not with her. “I am very sure she will not allow the girls to visit Nigeria on their own; more so, the father of her first daughter is based in Europe; so, what will the girl do in Nigeria,” she asked.
According to data by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), about 1.5 million Nigerians migrated abroad between 2015 and 2020. While about 70 percent of Nigerian migrants are between age 20 and 39 years old, according to the International Organization for Migration.
Marc Owen, director of visa, status and information services at UKVI, recently disclosed that about 225, 000 UK visas were processed for Nigerian nationals across all categories in the first half of 2024 alone.
“Children of Nigerian immigrants tend to lose the connection to their culture. In most cases, they see their parent’s culture as less important and flawed,” Oladapo Falokun, a US based Nigerian currently in Nigeria to visit.
Olutayo Irantiola, another publicist said it is not that they do not want to return; but that nobody wants to return as a failure. According to him, many would rather stay back to ensure they get their documentation sorted out and to lead a more steady life in terms of career; they have been able to sort the family out before coming back home.
“Nobody wants to fail his or her family, and in the process of not wanting to fail – people will prefer that they do all that they can to be successful in the country that they have migrated to,” he said.
Speaking further, he said that the painful part of japa is that many parents and grandparents have become sojourners in terms of moving from one country to the other to see their children and grandchildren. According to him, many parents also get denied their visas and other documentation to be able to leave the shores of Nigeria.
Read also: Japa: US tops list of migration destination for Nigerians
“I think it’s not every family that does not want to return home when they have the opportunity to leave Nigeria and other developing countries for the advanced world. Some of them are kept behind because they want to ensure that they can get their papers. Nobody wants to stay back because they want to,” Irantiola said.
The mass exodus of Nigerian youth has significant implications for the country’s development. The departure of highly educated and skilled individuals deprives Nigeria of much-needed talent, while the absence of young, educated, and skilled individuals can lead to social and cultural stagnation.
But, on the flip side is the economic implication of the increasing remittances by diaspora Nigerians. According to data from the World Bank, Nigerian migrants sent estimated $25 billion annual remittances back home. However, the remittances sent back by migrants, while beneficial, cannot compensate for the loss of human capital.
Irantiola said Africa is losing the family ties; one element he said is crucial to the continent. “The society here will definitely slide into what the White men are trying to do now in terms of having a lower number of young people who are strong and could work. We would get to that point here wherein household will just be full of old people without the young people around.”
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