Recently, Nigeria has witnessed an increased number of relocations, with the number of passports issued by the Nigeria Immigration Service rising by 38 percent between 2020 and 2021. As a result of the social and economic instabilities in Nigeria, many individuals have and are relocating to other countries in a bid for greener pastures. Statistics show the increased number of issued passports to be from 767,164 in 2020 to 1,059,607 in 2021, ranging from official, standard, diplomatic, emergency travel certificate, refugee passport or the conventional travel document, according to the NIS data.
The breakdown of this data indicated that 761,825 of all the passports issued in 2020 were standard, 2,024 official, 444 diplomatic and the remaining 2,871 being ETCs. The Nigeria Immigration Service, in 2021 recorded an increase in the passports issued, with 1,041,537 standard passports issued; 2,811 official passports; 895 diplomatic passports, 14,214 ETCs and 150 refugee passports. This is approximately 2,081 issued passports daily in 2020 and 2,853 in 2021. According to the United Kingdom Immigration report, reviewing the 2020-2021 period, indicated that Nigeria’s 13,609 healthcare workers were granted working visas, only second to India’s 42,966 practitioners.
Seven of every ten Nigerians to leave the country if given the chance.
According to the 2021 Nigeria Social Cohesion survey reported by the African Polling Institute, seven out of every ten Nigerians proved eager to leave the country, if given the opportunity. A World Bank survey taken in the same 2021 also indicated that at least 56,000 Nigerians were leaving the country yearly than arriving. Further researcher also revealed that as of 2019, over 19,000 skilled and study United Kingdom visas were issued to Nigerians, rising by 210 percent to 59,000 in 2021.
Also, according to obtained data from the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, 12,595 Nigerians relocated to Canada in 2019, where the NIS reportedly issued 1,198,274 passports, averaging 3282 passports daily. A clear observation of the situation of Nigerians migrating from the country indicated a huge mix of professionals like medical doctors, technology experts and nurses resigning from their jobs and leveraging the United Kingdom’s skilled work visa application and it’s equivalent in other countries.
Socioeconomics and security dilapidations responsible for mass relocation.
The study visas have also opened another route for more Nigerians to leave the country to other countries like UK, Canada and the United States. Mr. Ariyo Dare-Atoye, the Executive Director of the Adopt a Goal Initiative noted that the increased number of Nigerians relocating was closely together with the harsh socioeconomic realities and security challenges that have ravaged the country over the past decade. However, reports also indicated that the new passport scheme launched last year might have hugely contributed to the ease of passport issuance to many applicants.
Dare-Atoye further asserted that the numbers would continually rise if the country failed to elect credible political leaders in the impending election. Critical about the state of affairs in Nigeria, he complained about the statistics of Nigerian medical doctors that have relocated over the last two years, noting that numerous Nigerians leveraged the pandemic in sourcing for openings around the world, searching for jobs and opportunities globally. He declared that more Nigerians overtime will also follow suit.
More Nigerians to relocate if 2023 election is not favorable.
He stated that the new and efficient system by the immigration service was not the reason for the increased relocation but the social, economic and security deficiencies that have ravaged the country. Activist and convener of Concerned Nigerians, Deji Adeyanju also stated that Nigerians yet to relocate were only marking time before their eventual exits. He noted that Nigerians were fed up of the system and if the results of the impending 2023 elections are not favorable, more Nigerians will find means to relocate. He regarded Nigeria as a concentration camp, with Nigerians gripping any opportunity to leave the country.
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Relocation is on the high in Nigeria because the security and socio economic situation is not favourable and more people are applying for passport issuance in order to migrate out of the country.
You don’t expect people not to emigrate when things are not going okay in the country. A lot of people have gone abroad to seek greener pastures. The economy is bad. We don’t have a credible economy. Things are not working well in this country. People will have no choice than to leave the country
People are moving away from the country because the country no balance thing are not in order the economy is bad and the the security is bad and so on so what did u expect people will be leaving to seek where they can be okay with it so they will move to other country
The social, economic, security and more deficiencies that have ravaged the country are enough reasons for anyone to leave. Nigerians yet to relocate are only marking time before their eventual exits. It’s no doubt that Nigerians are fed up of the system and if the results of the impending 2023 elections are not favorable, more Nigerians will find means to relocate.
The turmoil we have been facing in this country is enough reasons for anyone to want to leave and start a new life. Everything is apart here. Just bunch of useless merciless government. The only hope some people have is the coming election. Nigerians are tired of the system, and if the upcoming elections in 2023 don’t turn out well, more people would look for ways to leave.
There has been a rise in the number of people moving out of Nigeria, which has led to an increase in the number of passports being issued by the Nigeria Immigration Service.
Hardship is too much in this country, everybody want to run out. government if una like increase am more. You people has failed us in all ramification, failed government
As a result of the social and economic instability in Nigeria, a great number of people have already relocated to other countries, and others are in the process of doing so, in the hope of finding better opportunities elsewhere.
Because of the deplorable position the country is in, almost everyone living in Nigeria expressed a desire to leave the country if they were given the opportunity to do so.
The situation of Nigerians leaving the country has been observed closely, and it appears that a wide variety of professionals are leaving their jobs and using the skilled work visa application to move to the United Kingdom or another country with similar requirements.
The new passport programme that was introduced the year before may have made the issuance of passports significantly simpler for a great number of applicants.
The improved effectiveness of the immigration service’s system was not the cause of the increase in people leaving the country; rather, it was the social, economic, and security problems that have plagued the nation in recent years.
There has been a dramatic increase in the number of Nigerians leaving the nation over the previous decade, and this trend coincided with the onset of the country’s hard socioeconomic realities and security issues.
People have a little or no other option than to leave the country, the economy is bad, security is issue is not getting better, the government is not doing anything to help.
I’m pretty sure that if there was no financial restrictions for the rest in the country, the increase in passport issuance would have been more than 38 percent
It should be underlined that the figures would keep increasing if the nation didn’t choose trustworthy political leaders in the upcoming election.
People are leaving the country in search of greener pasture which I can not blame them as our economy is dilapidated. We can’t enjoy the country until we restore the glory days.
The migration of Nigeria citizens will continue unless most of the major problems facing Nigeria are solve
A lot of people have gone abroad to seek greener pastures. The economy is bad. We don’t have a credible economy. Things are not working well in this country. People will have no choice than to leave the country.
The 38 percent increase in passport issuance shows that immigrations has improved their services and delivery. That is great.
A lot of people are moving out of the country because of the present situation of the country. 38 percent increase in passport issuance is a prove of mass movement of people out of the country.