Why many Nigerians seek education abroad

The poor standard of education in Nigeria has been forcing many people, especially the young ones, to seek an alternative outside the country. Daily Trust on Sunday takes a look at the issues and spoke with some of those involved in this brain drain.   Kenneth, 34, graduated from one of the universities in the […]

The poor standard of education in Nigeria has been forcing many people, especially the young ones, to seek an alternative outside the country. Daily Trust on Sunday takes a look at the issues and spoke with some of those involved in this brain drain.

 

Kenneth, 34, graduated from one of the universities in the eastern part of Nigeria 9 years ago. This communication specialist in a nongovernmental organisation is heading to Germany in pursuit of his master’s degree.

His decision was informed by the desire to seek a greener pasture. It was when he got the opportunity to travel to Germany for an official assignment and visited some universities that he developed the interest to be part of the system he saw.

“I have been saving for a very long time now because I have planned to leave Nigeria. There is nothing more for anyone in this country. Thank God that I was able to secure admission into a university for my master’s degree,” he said.

Disclosing that he has no intention of coming back to Nigeria, he said, “As soon as I settle down, I will be able to come home and see my family.

“I will be schooling while I also try to secure a little menial job to help me out. Although I have saved a lot to enable me be comfortable in the country, I need to also work hard as a Nigerian.”

Kenneth is one of millions of Nigerians who are seeking to leave the country in search of foreign education and greener pastures.

Apart from individuals, groups, states and even the federal government sponsor young men and women to acquire better education in different countries across the globe.

It is said that in every country around the world there is a large number of Nigerian students and those applying for admission. And the number keeps increasing.

Daily Trust Saturday gathered that Canada, United States of America, United Kingdom, Germany, Republic of Ireland, Hungary, Cyprus, Ukraine, Netherlands, Norway and some Arab countries, are highly patronised by Nigerians. It was also gathered that between May and July this year, the United Kingdom received 2.7million applications from Nigerians.

Daily Trust Saturday learnt that Germany has restricted the number of visas to Nigerian students. Also, early this year, there was 100 per cent visa denial to Nigerian students by Turkey because they already have a lot of Nigerians in their country, who are reportedly not studying but engaging in crimes.

A parent who gave his name as Emeka said he chose to send his child to Germany to study because the quality of education in Nigeria is poor.

“Sometime back, our educational system ranked among the best in the world, but that is no longer the case.

“I think that in this age, you must educate a child to be competitive, not just within your environment but globally. I don’t think our system currently offers that quality, especially in technical areas. My child is about to go out to study a technology-related course and I don’t think we have what it takes here to give him what he wants,” he said.

Emeka noted that it is no longer about the certificate but the quality of education, saying, “If you can make a difference with that education and compete out there, your certificate can be respected wherever you walk in to apply for a job. And when you get a job you would do it properly. We are trying to give them that competitive edge and not to put them at a disadvantage.”

On the challenge of dollar exchange he said, “It is a hindrance, but as Nigerians we never say die. If you want to do something you find a way to get it done. So if it is difficult to get the dollars, we are not going to give up because you are looking at what you want to achieve. So it is a problem but we must find a way to get around it.”

Also, Mrs Ezeala decided to send her children abroad because of the situation in the country. “If I have my way I will send all of them because Nigeria has nothing to offer us again.

“Our education system is in a bad shape. The economy is also bad. The way things are going, it is important for every family to have someone outside the country so that if the person studies and gets established there, he can come to the aid of those here. With the present spate of insecurity, a whole family can be wiped out by insurgents or bandits,” she said.

She regretted that it took them long to realize the importance of schooling abroad. She said, “We used to preach that there’s no place like home, but that is no longer the case. Unfortunately, now that we made up our mind, the exchange rate of the dollar is discouraging. But we are doing all we can to send two of them to Canada, where we have relatives.”

Felix Friday wakes up every day wishing he could go abroad to further his education. He has pursued this dream to the extent of seeking admission in some African countries. He has not been able to go because his parents said there was no money.

“I want to go to school outside Nigeria where you are sure of when to graduate and strike will not change your plan. Besides, there are opportunities to school and work outside Nigeria,” he said.

Friday, however, said he would not give up, adding that although he is seeking admission into the Federal University of Technology, Akure, he would likely go for postgraduate studies abroad.

A Nigerian student in Netherlands who didn’t want to be named said he went there through scholarship but had no plan to return after his master’s degree programme.

“I had considered relocation prior to that time. The scholarship appeared to be the much needed booster and it was embraced,” he said.

Daily Trust Saturday, however, learnt that as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, between 2019 and 2020, there was a drastic fall in the number of Nigerians going abroad to further their education. Even those who had secured admission and visas could not go. But this year, there is a boom as many countries opened their borders and economies.

The chief executive officer of FAB, an education consultancy firm, Felix Adedayo, told our reporter that, “A lot of people are travelling through schools because that is the easiest way to relocate to those countries. Some of them sell their last property to travel.”

He said education loan business is currently booming in the country as some commercial banks give loans to people who do not have enough money in their accounts. “They can give you up to N10million to put in your account for three to six months so that you can apply for visa. They charge you like seven per cent monthly. When your visa is out you give them back the money and travel. Those who can afford it go for it.

“A lot of people are doing that; and it has helped a lot of average families to travel,” he said.

Asked to speak on the number of people who leave the country to study abroad, he said, “Patronage is up and down. It has always been like that. Before 2015 there was a boom as the dollar was between N170 and N250. But 2019 to last year was a little bit tough. You can’t compare that. Those going to study need to know their budget.

“Some parents also cause problems for their children because they will send them out and after one year they will be expected to start training themselves. And some of them drop out if they can no longer raise money to finance their education. When they find it difficult to feed, some of them join those who sell drugs and people who engage in other crimes.”

He said parents are now more skeptical about where they send their children, adding that some of them have gone through a lot to bring back their children who got involved in one crime or another.

Speaking on the situation, a professor of Environmental Planning and Management in the Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Nasiru Idris, said Nigerians were travelling abroad for studies because it is very easy to secure admission outside Nigeria.

“The quality tertiary education in Nigeria is not that bad. If you are following the social media very well, you would notice that Nigerian students at the postgraduate level are doing very well abroad. This is to tell you that they have gotten good education at their undergraduate level,” he said.

But Adedayo disagreed with him, saying, “A lot of graduates churned out of our schools are half-baked. We have thousands of graduates, but how many are employable. A lot of them who come here cannot write a motivational letter. Some will ask what you mean by that.

“Here, nothing is moving in the educational sector. Heads of education agencies, lecturers and vice chancellors don’t even put their children in the schools they head. This means they don’t even believe in the system they are supervising. That is a challenge.”

He, however, warned that most universities patronised by Nigerians in many countries are substandard and not up to the quality of some Nigerian universities.

Prof Idris lamented that if the trend continues, Nigeria would lose some of her best brains.

Proffering a solution he said, “To address the challenges of education migration in Nigeria, we need to have more tertiary institutions in all the states of the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), so that qualified applicants would be accommodated.”