For many young working Nigerians, the dream of leaving their homeland has become a prevalent aspiration. Viewed as an escape route from the myriad challenges facing the country, the average Nigerian youth saves and prays towards the prospect of a life beyond their nation’s current struggles.
According to punchng.com, Nigeria is currently facing one of its worst socioeconomic crises in decades and on top of this insecurity has spread to every nook and cranny of the country. As people are grappling with rising food prices, they are also scared of being the next victim of kidnapping.
As of the end of June 2023, 19,366 Nigerians had been abducted in 2,694 kidnapping cases across 10 years, according to the Nigeria Security Tracker. In 2023 alone, 4,049 occurrences of kidnappings were recorded nationwide based on data from the 2023 Nigeria Security Report published by Beacon Consulting.
The kidnappings are now so bizarre that people are no longer safe in their homes with recorded cases of home abductions on the rise. This is particularly exacerbated by sluggish economic growth, which has stayed below five per cent in recent years.
The World Bank recently stated that Nigeria’s economic growth is too slow to address extreme poverty in the country. Inflation has remained very high and almost crossed the 29 per cent mark in 2023, indicating the skyrocketing prices of goods and services in the country.
Also, formal unemployment remains at record levels as only 12 per cent of workers in the country were in wage employment as of the end of the second quarter of 2023, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
These factors fuel the passion of many young professional Nigerians to migrate, especially through the study route. 141,000 Nigerians migrated to the United Kingdom between June 2022 and June 2023, according to figures published by the UK’s Office for National Statistics.
Nigerian students and their dependents contribute about £1.9bn to the UK economy, an analysis by SBM Intelligence found.
In 2022, 22,085 Nigerians were admitted to Canada as permanent residents, and in the first half of 2023, Canada received 10,180 new immigrants from Nigeria, according to data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.
Nigerians spent about $1.01bn on foreign education in 2022, a 40.36 per cent increase from the $720.05m that was spent in 2021. They spent $896.09m on foreign education in the first six months of 2023, according to data from the Central Bank of Nigeria.
A recent survey by the Africa Polling Institute indicated that 69 per cent of Nigerians planned to relocate if given the opportunity.
A 2023 report by Phillips Consulting revealed that over 52 per cent of professionals in the country wanted to travel overseas. A study from SAP research disclosed that 80 per cent of Nigerian companies expect to experience a skills gap in 2024.
However, the Nigerian migration dream is fast becoming too expensive and increasingly unattainable. In June 2023, the Nigerian government removed the rate cap in its official foreign exchange market, allowing market forces to determine the actual value of the naira.
That immediately led to the devaluation of the naira. In July 2023 (about a month after the move), the national currency fell from 471/dollar to 750/dollar and 589.4/pound to 957.2/pound. As of January 24, the currency had further plunged to 887/dollar and 1133/pound.
At the parallel market, where most people meet their forex needs, the local currency exchanged 1,420/dollar on Friday.
In one fell swoop, the price of everything associated with relocation, including school fees, visa fees, and more has surged due to the significant depreciation of the naira.
As one expert, who did not want to be named, explained to The PUNCH, “The new exchange rate has caused a significant increase in proof of funds. This has affected current international students and future international students in ways that have brought tears to many.
“At the moment, current international students can’t pay their fees because the rate has increased by over 50 per cent. International students have resorted to paying in cash from their respective currency rather than changing the money to their home country’s currency.
“The rise in the new exchange rate has been detrimental in the following ways to proof of funds. Increase in the rate of borrowing money, and sales of property to raise funds. Families are cutting down on the number of family members to relocate to the UK.
“Students that have saved money for years to pay for their initial deposit can’t pay because the exchange rate has increased. Currently, they have no option but to put a stop to their travel abroad plans.”
An educational consultant, Oyebode Omolewa, explained proof of funds as a student’s tuition balance plus living expenses. According to her, it is a crucial requirement for students planning to go to the UK as it proves to the UK government that the students can take care of themselves while studying.
She highlighted that if a student’s tuition is about 15,000 pounds, they pay 5,000 pounds to the university, and their proof of funds will be the 10,000 pounds balance plus living expenses.
In an earlier interview with The PUNCH, Omolewa said, “If the school is located outside of London, the cost of living is 9,207 pounds. If it is in London, it is 12,006 pounds. Let’s say we have a 10,000 pounds balance, if the school is outside London, which is 9,207 pounds, when you add the two together, you will have 19,207 pounds multiplied by the exchange rate of the day you applied for a visa.
“If it was N1,000 on the day, it would be 19,207 pounds multiplied by N1,000. Before, it was about N580 multiplied by 19,207 pounds.”
PoF had doubled, she noted. Already, many Nigerians are struggling to pay their fees in the UK due to the devaluation of the naira.
Recently, a student at Liverpool John Moores University became stranded after the school withdrew his access to the school portal following his failure to pay his tuition.
The Nigerian (name withheld) could not raise the required 4,800 pounds to complete his tuition. He told The PUNCH, “The school has withdrawn my access to its platform. As a result, I can’t check the results of my last exam. Everything is done via the platform. I cannot also access my official email given by the school. I can’t attend both online and in-person classes again. It is very frustrating. I am completely shut out.
