- Worsening poverty rate forces families to rely on foreign aid
- No regrets borrowing, selling property to leave Nigeria – Migrants
BY TIMOTHY AGBOR, OSOGBO
Between 2011 and 2022, Nigerians living abroad have sent about $252billion to their family members, dependants, friends and acquaintances at home, findings by The Point have revealed.
The process of sending money or goods to family members or friends in one’s home country, otherwise known as remittances, is a lifeline for many migrant workers around the world.
Not only do remittances aid in the prosperity of individual households — helping to pay for things like food, education and other bills — they are also vital to the prosperity of many developing economies around the world, of which Nigeria has been benefiting hugely from as its citizens continue to exit the country for greener pastures abroad.
Nigeria has been dealing with the challenge of brain-drain for decades as a result of the rising number of people fleeing in search of opportunity amid the country’s dim economic prospects.
Starting with an economic collapse in the 1980s, millions of Nigerians, mostly youths, have continued to move to Europe, United States and Asia among others.
In the years that followed, the health care and agriculture sectors suffered, and unemployment skyrocketed, pushing people abroad for work. These trends have shaped today’s Nigeria.
For the last eight years, under former President Muhammadu Buhari, corruption deepened despite his promises to fight it and unemployment rose from 9.7 percent in 2014 to a projected 37 percent this year. For most Nigerians, the cost of living has become unbearable and they couldn’t continue to endure the hardship.
Even as outcry trails the exodus of professionals and unskilled citizens abroad, the nation appears to be enjoying the dividends following the rise in remittances over the years.
Reports showed that $252billion was remitted to people in Nigeria by their relatives overseas for the past 12 years.
The World Bank provides annual estimates of remittance flows globally (and bilaterally), based on national balance of payment statistics produced by Central Banks and compiled by the International Monetary Fund.
According to the World Bank, remittances, usually understood as the money or goods that migrants send back to families and friends in origin countries, are often the most direct and well-known link between migration and development.
Available records from the World Bank showed that in 2011, $20.62bn was remitted to Nigerians; in 2012, $20.54bn was sent home; $20.8bn was recorded in 2013, while $21bn was remitted in 2014. It was $20.63 in 2015, $19.7bn in 2016 and $22.04bn was remitted by Nigerians abroad in 2017.
In 2018, Nigeria became the largest remittance recipient country in sub-Saharan Africa after receiving more than $24.3 billion in official remittances (an increase of $2 billion from 2017), representing a total of 6.1% of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product. In 2019, Nigeria received $23.81bn.
However, the country received a sharp decline in remittances in 2020 with only $17.21 billion due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
By 2021, however, Nigeria received remittance inflows of close to $20 billion, representing four times the Foreign Direct Investments into the country. World Bank statistics in 2022 showed diaspora remittances to Nigeria standing at over $22billion dollars.
Meanwhile, the World Bank said that in 2023, growth in remittances is expected to ease to 1.3 per cent.
Reacting to the 2022 remittances recorded for Nigeria and other African countries, the bank said, “This is a remarkable increase, given that it followed a 10.6 per cent growth rate in 2021 and the economic environment seemed difficult due to slowing economies around the world, inflation, and the war in Ukraine.”
“Remittances are estimated to grow by 1.4 per cent to $656 billion in 2023 as economic activity in remittance source countries is set to soften, limiting employment and wage gains for migrants,” it added.
According to the Global Director of the Social Protection and Jobs Global Practice at the World Bank, Michal Rutkowski, “Remittances are highly complementary to government cash transfers and essential to households during times of need.”
Similarly, Agusto & Co, a leading Pan-African credit rating agency and research firm, has disclosed that foreign exchange remittance flows into Nigeria would rise to about $26 billion by 2025, and would be supported by improved economic conditions in advanced economies.
Given Nigeria’s high poverty rate, which increases families’ reliance on assistance from their children and loved ones in foreign land, the agency also anticipates that the need to finance the basic requirements of dependents to remain the most important element driving remittances in the near to medium term.
Some experts in travel agencies said that most of the remittances from Nigerians abroad were money borrowed from families and friends to pursue their trips.
“Many Nigerians had to borrow millions of naira from families and other acquaintances to fund their movement abroad. I have seen parents that had to sell land and houses to sponsor their children to leave the country. So, major parts of these remittances are refunds of the borrowed money,” John Adams, a travel agent, told The Point.
Notwithstanding, some Nigerians living overseas have said they never regretted spending so much money to flee the country.
A Nigerian currently in the United Kingdom, Thompson Taiwo, said foreign remittances have been dropping because the cost of living abroad has skyrocketed.
Despite battling many financial obligations, the former broadcaster said several Nigerians have been trooping into the UK.
Identifying some push factors, he said, “Nigerians’ exits to other countries are being majorly caused by economic and political factors. A lot of young people believe that the grass is greener here (UK) and they are right because there are better opportunities here, though expensive.
As against what is obtainable in Nigeria, there are better medical facilities and education. It has been revealed that seven out of ten Nigerians are ready to migrate to other countries.”
He stressed that the cost of living in the UK has been rising, saying, “Despite this, Nigerians are working hard and sending money back home and helping their family members. More people get out of the country, we have more remittances coming in. We have been struggling to cope with the global rising cost of living. You can’t work for more than 20 hours in a week. For instance, if you get 800 or 900 pounds from it, you have to pay 500 pounds for accommodation and you have to eat. About 100 pounds will remain. That is why some students here are frustrated, coupled with the fact that most of them don’t have proper information before coming here.
“It took me more than three months to get a job. I was paying N1.5 million per month for accommodation. If you leave Nigeria with N2 million, you can be frustrated. We pay for everything here; there is no free service, like the ones we got back in Nigeria. If you want to go out in Nigeria, you can keep your children with neighbours but here in the UK, you can’t do that, you will need childminders and you will pay them.
Things that are free in Nigeria are what we pay for here. Everything is commercialized here. No free things here and no consideration. You will work at night or your wife works. Your children can’t miss attending school abroad.
“In all these, the reality is that there are better opportunities here. I work in a place where I am respected. I am enjoying myself in the UK.
People respect me and I am well paid. When I joined the organisation I am working with, I was sent to training on mental health. For every pound you earn, you will work for it,” he stressed.
Another migrant, Fadejimi Fajuke, advised Nigerians planning to leave the country to be well prepared financially, intellectually and emotionally, saying, “You must as well have financial resources before you embark on such a journey. The level of preparedness of Nigerian immigrants is not always sufficient. They are soon humbled by the rents. You might end up battling mental health issues if you are not prepared. Then, to have a better experience, you have to seek social support from friends and families. I say again that you might have yourself to blame for leaving Nigeria if you are not fully prepared,” the UK based man added.
Sandra Akhare was an On Air Personality before he left Nigeria to UK.
According to her, “It (moving abroad) is becoming a norm. It is more like an invasion. I just feel it is not just running into the UK, it is staying in a system that works. The system here works and accepts people and develops people. People from Ghana, Cameroon and Rwanda are all here, not only Nigerians. The system works here and they know your value.”
