What are the factors responsible for brain drain? In this blog post, we will be looking at five factors that are responsible for brain drain in Nigeria
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Introduction
Every year, many people from Nigeria leave in droves to other countries.
These are medical doctors, nurses, computer scientists, and bankers. They leave to other countries like USA, UK and Canada, among others.
This movement of professionals to other countries for better lifestyle and opportunities is what is known as “brain drain”.
Statistics
According to The Global Economy, Nigeria has a high Human Flight and Brain Drain Index of 6.6 in the year 2022. This ia high compared to many other countries.
Between December 2021 and May 2022, about 727 Nigerian trained medical doctors left for other countries. Most, if not all of these peoole are no even planning to come back to Nigeria again. They have seen eetter opportunity abroad.
Factors responsible for brain drain in Nigeria.
So we’re going to be looking at the factors that fuel brain drain.
1) Economic factors.
This is basically one of the top factors responsible for brain drain.
In Nigeria, for instance, the official government minimum wage as at 2022 is 30,000 Naira.
Meanwhile, not every state government is even paying workers the 30,000 Naira minimum wage.
This is just one example of how economic factors contribute to brain drain in Nigeria
After working for some time, they need to afford some decent accommodation, a car can be able to afford some basic comforts, and also be able to retire without having to think of a lot of things to do to sustain themselves.
This is one of the problems in the civil service in Nigeria. When they get to retirement, many people are frustrated and angry. To avoid this and to make ends meet as well, some people make adjustments to their age, all in a bid to elongate their time in service.
2) Security
Over time, we have had Issues with security. The North, South, East and Western parts of the country are not spared. People are not sure what will happen next. This, in itself, is scary and makes people leave once they get the opportunity.
3) Social amenities
By social amenities, we mean basic needs of life such as good roads, water, electricity, good quality education and the likes.
Many of these things are lacking in Nigeria. Some people cannot remember the last time they saw electricity in their homes. They have to depend on generators for power supply.
So, people move out so they can enjoy the amenities in these countries.
4) Working systems
When you talk about working systems, you talk of health care, you talk of education, you talk of governments in these countries.
There is stability in every area. Everything is in place and working fine when you need it-health care, education and so on.
In Nigeria, there is incessant strikes in both the education and health sectors. This does not augur well for the populace.
5) Comfort and less stress
People consider Nigeria stressful to live in.
You may be staying in a place like Lagos.
You have to get up early in the morning and come back late in the night, all in a bid to make ends meet.
But then in some other countries, you don’t have to go through so much stress to achieve same or even better results.
You can also have opportunities to travel to other countries on rest and on vacation.
In some places in Nigeria, in some companies, you people find it difficult to even grant you a leave, even your annual leave.
They will always complain of staff shortage aand ask you who will do your work when you are on leave.
6) Lack of job satisfaction
A lot of people are not satisfied with their jobs. From hostile work environment to toxic bosses as well as to lack of basic equipment to work with. All these make people want to leave.
So what are the consequences of brain drain?
Brain drain short changes the system.
Loss of manpower
Look at the medical field, for instance.
After being trained in Nigeria, our doctors and nurses move out to the UK, for instance, and start working with the NHS.
The NHS is one of the largest recruiters of
health professionals.
So what this means is that the potential service that those doctors or nurses, for instance, could have given to Nigerians and to Nigeria is lost and lost permanently. They don’t even plan to come back anymore
This has a negative impact on the health indices of our society.
Fewer people are left attending to others.
This is an example with just one sector.
How Do We Stop Brain Drain in Nigeria?
Can brain drain actually be stopped completely? Very unlikely. We shoul
A multifaceted approach is required, which involves fixing security, the political system, and providing people with better amenities.
This is a long-term process that requires willingness and effort on the part of key stakeholders
Wrapping Up
We have seen the top five factors that are responsible for brain drain in Nigeria. This situation robs Nigeria of her skilled professionals. it.
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