ERRATICALITY : Da-Silva
Why Nigeria Wastes Its Youth – And How to Stop It
Columnists|TEC News|1st September, 2025.
Nigeria is not short of brains, energy, or creativity. Walk through any community and you’ll find young men and women full of ideas and drive. Yet, what do we see? Graduates pushing wheelbarrows, riding okada and keke, or roaming the streets in search of opportunities that never come.
It is a tragedy when the most qualified minds are sidelined while the unqualified, connected, or corrupt get the top jobs. This is the story of Nigeria’s wasted youth potential.
The Waste of Talent
- Jobs for sale, not merit. In too many government offices and private companies, employment is secured by money, connections, or politics, not by competence. Bright graduates like Emeka, who finished with a First Class in Accounting, are reduced to driving tricycles to feed their families, while less qualified candidates with “godfathers” become managers.
- Brain drain. Our doctors, nurses, IT experts, and creatives are leaving in droves. Amina, a young nurse from Kano, worked for 18 months in a state hospital without a salary. Today she is in the UK, where her pay arrives every month without excuses.
- Informal hustle trap. Over 9 out of 10 Nigerians work in the informal sector—hawking, riding bikes, selling in markets. Bola, a graduate of Political Science, sells phone accessories in Lagos traffic. “I would rather sweat under the sun here than beg a politician for work,” he says.
- Exploitation. Many young people who secure jobs are underpaid, delayed for months, or even denied their wages. Chioma, a graphic designer, worked six months for a local firm and was paid only once. She now freelances online, earning in dollars for foreign clients.
The Consequences
When a system wastes its young people, the results are everywhere:
- Frustrated youth are drawn into crime, cyber fraud, kidnapping, or drugs just to survive.
- Many women are pushed into prostitution, from street corners to high-class hotels.
- Families remain trapped in poverty even though their children are educated.
- Nigeria spends money training professionals who later go abroad to enrich other countries.
It is no surprise that so many want to japa. Abroad, whether educated or uneducated, your sweat has value. At home, you may work hard but remain unpaid or underpaid.
How Do We Stop This?
Nigeria cannot continue like this. Change is possible, but only if leaders and society act differently. Here are practical solutions:
- Make jobs fair. Recruitment must be transparent. Job adverts should be open, tests computer-based, and results published. Selling jobs should be a punishable crime.
- Upgrade apprenticeship. Systems like the Igbo apprenticeship model already work. Government can standardize, support, and guarantee capital or placements for successful apprentices.
- Turn NYSC into real jobs. Instead of wasting one year, corps members should serve in businesses, farms, schools, and hospitals where they earn and gain practical skills.
- Respect wages. No worker should be owed. Late payment should attract fines. If a business cannot pay staff, it should not operate.
- Support creativity and tech. Nigeria’s youth excel in music, film, fashion, and IT. Government should provide stable power, hubs, and funding so they can earn at home and even export services abroad. Tunde, a Lagos software developer, earns from US clients while living in Nigeria—proof that our youth can thrive if given the right tools.
- Retain professionals. Doctors, nurses, teachers, and engineers leave because conditions are poor. Improve pay, provide equipment, and respect their work, and many will stay.
- Match skills to jobs. Our schools must teach employable and practical skills—technical, vocational, and digital—that connect directly to available work.
The Way Forward
This will not end by speeches or promises. It will end when we create a system that respects talent and rewards work.
- If jobs are given on merit, not corruption…
- If apprentices are trained, supported, and settled…
- If wages are paid fairly and on time…
- If youth are equipped with relevant skills and opportunities…
…then young Nigerians will not need to japa. They will succeed right here at home.
Nigeria does not lack talent. It only lacks a system that believes in its own people.
✍️ By: Johnson O. Da-Silva
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