Coronation of the new Alaafin underscores a key benefit of japa

The expression “wa ko ere oko wale/dele” is a special prayer by the Yoruba for a kinsman residing outside Yorubaland or their immediate communities. If you transliterate that it means “You will bring the gains (bountiful harvest) of the farm home.” In ancient times, Yorubaland was a largely agrarian society where most adult males were farmers. It was thus an important prayer to a farmer who expected a great harvest after he had laboured through the planting season preparing his farm, preparing the seedlings, planting, and then weeding the farm to ensure his crops grow and mature well. You’d think it’s a given that a harvest would be great due to the farmer’s labour and diligence. Ordinarily, it should be but several unforeseen circumstances such as fire, disease, theft, and pest attacks could lead to poor or no harvest at all, hence the weightiness of the prayer.

Japa and the ‘ere oko’ prayer

However, the prayer has taken on a more connotative meaning, especially as society becomes less agrarian. Today, the prayer is said to people who live and work outside their communities to wish them success in their endeavours and the ability to retire to their homeland with the benefits of their hard work and labour. These benefits go beyond material wealth to also include the children or grandchildren born to them and even the friends or network they could draw on for the good and benefit of their community.

Lately, the prayer has become more expedient considering the spate of emigration or japa of Nigerians, particularly the Yoruba, to foreign lands tens of thousands of kilometers away from home in Europe, the Americas, Asia, Australia, and the Far East, in search of a better life.

Oba Owoade demonstrates japa’s benefits

This prayer played out in the life of the recently installed 46th Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Akeem Owoade, whose coronation is slated for Saturday, 5 April 2025, in Oyo. The coronation will be one of the most significant examples yet of how japa could immensely benefit the homeland in the medium to the long term.

Until his installation as the Alaafin, Oba Owoade lived in Canada and was the Project Coordinator at Manitoba Hydro, Canada, an electric power and natural gas utility provider. It was therefore no surprise when the Chairman of the Local Organising Committee for the coronation, Adekunle Ogunmola, revealed on Thursday that the erstwhile Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, will be in attendance in Oyo. I imagined that Trudeau, the Canadian Prime Minister until last week, confirmed his attendance while still the Prime Minister of Canada.

When Oba Owoade reached out to Trudeau through his connections in Manitoba Hydro, I imagined, the then Prime Minister must have been elated to be part of the coronation. He must have felt a special pride that his country hosted a future Alaafin of Oyo, a historic and preeminent royal stool in Africa, and indeed the world. He must have felt a sense of satisfaction that Canada has a new connection, through the Alaafin, to Oyo State and Nigeria. Such connections can be exploited at different levels for the economic benefits of Canada and Oyo, now or in the future.

The Alaafin himself must be delighted that he was able and will continue to gain access to the seat of power in Canada. Herein lies the often overlooked significant benefit of japa; the ability of Nigerian professionals in those countries to build quality networks that can be leveraged to develop their homelands.

Indian, Chinese, and Israeli examples

Indian, Chinese, and Israeli diasporas, through the support of their homelands which developed policies and strategies to take advantage of the trend, were able to articulate their nation’s socio-economic interests abroad, built the necessary networks based on those interests, and leveraged them for the development of their countries. The roles played by diasporas from these countries in the development of their homelands are well documented.

Vilifying japa will achieve nothing

Even now, despite the establishment of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), the government still largely considers japa in a bad light. For instance, the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN) recently introduced some strange requirements for nurses wishing to leave the country to practice elsewhere. First, the new law stipulates, a nurse must have two years of post-licence practice to japa. Also, application for verification of certificate(s) to international nursing boards/councils now takes a minimum of six (6) months up from the two (2) weeks it was before. Lawmakers are considering a regulation requiring medical graduates to work in the country for five years before they are given a full licence to practice.

So, rather than address the systemic rot in the healthcare system and in other sectors that is driving medical personnel away and fueling emigration, such as poor facilities, poor pay, and a lack of growth opportunities, among other issues, the government would vilify and victimise medical personnel as if they are responsible for the rot. In any case, these regulations will fall flat if legally challenged because the government didn’t fund the training of these medical personnel and labour laws are clear on labour mobility. Intimidation and wrongheaded policies will not stem japa. On the contrary, when people feel boxed in they resort to different tactics, sometimes unethical, to leave. And, when they leave, it becomes difficult to convince such to come back and they may be lost forever to the country.

Nigerians are courted globally

Even foreign countries and organisations specifically target Nigerians, considered highly intelligent, encouraging and supporting them to emigrate. So, really, the government may be fighting a losing battle trying to curtail japa. It should learn from neighbour Ghana. Ghana, for instance, introduced an initiative in 2019 called ‘Year of Return’ to encourage not only Ghanaians but also the African diaspora, Afro-Caribbeans, and African Americans to reconnect with the continent and take advantage of the varied opportunities in Ghana and the continent. It followed that up with ‘Beyond the Return’ initiative in 2020 to consolidate the gains of Year of Return. Nigeria should be taking the lead in such areas as well as partnering private institutions to entice diaspora Nigerians back to their homeland.

Using education to gain access to diaspora Nigerians

Education is particularly critical to gaining the trust and respect of diaspora Africans, particularly Nigerians. This understanding birthed SparkXplorer, a platform conceived to tap into the growing japa trend and help empower the next generation of Nigerians in the US through exposure to quality education, starting from the basic level. And the platform is beginning to witness some remarkable performances from Spark Scholars.

I truly believe that diaspora Nigerians are desirous to reconnect with their homeland to enable them to contribute their skills and expertise and tap into their networks to help build the country. The government should concentrate on driving policies such as the National Policy on Health Workforce Migration to entice healthcare professionals back to Nigeria rather than seeking to demonise emigration.

Oba Owoade should be pleased with himself for attracting such A-lister like Trudeau and others to his coronation, his hometown, and Nigeria, and rightly so. I wish him the best in his new role and hopefully, the government will take note of his example and change its approach to japa.