Nigeria has lost more lecturers than doctors to ‘Japa’ syndrome – Minister

The Minister of Education, Tahir Mamman, said on Thursday that Nigeria’s education system has suffered the most from the mass emigration of professionals abroad.

Though rarely acknowledged, no sector has lost more professionals to emigration, widely known as the ‘Japa’ syndrome, than the education sector, Mr Mamman, a professor, said.

The minister spoke at the National University Commission (NUC) when he inaugurated the newly appointed members of the governing council for the universities, polytechnics and colleges of education.

Mr Mamman noted that it takes at least 15 years to train a professional to the doctorate level, noting that when such a person emigrates, it’s a loss for the country and the system that trained them.

“A lot of time we talk about the medical personnel but I can confirm to you that we have lost more teachers in Nigeria than any other sector, especially for teachers in the tertiary institutions,” he said.

“In the face of this loss, we now have private universities coming up, competing for the same staff with the public universities.”

The minister, therefore, charged the newly inaugurated governing councils “to rethink how we can bridge this gap, how we can bring back qualified people into the teaching profession and support them to provide the necessary manpower”.

Multiple sources of funding

He also asked them to steer their respective institutions towards multiple sources of funding, saying the government cannot singlehandedly meet the financial needs of all the tertiary institutions.

He asked them to explore diverse sources of funding, including partnerships with the private sector and international organisations, alumni, and through endowment and sponsored research.

The minister also listed other challenges ahead of the newly inaugurated councils including addressing the grievances of the staff unions based in their respective institutions, sexual violence, and unstable academic calendar.

The minister said: “Our education sector is grappling with many challenges. And the government has huge expectations from you in addressing the challenges facing these institutions.

“I implore you all to reciprocate the trust and confidence which the government has reposed in you by deploying your knowledge, skills and wealth of experience in moving our tertiary institutions to greater heights.”

Consequences of poor funding

Inadequate funding for Nigerian tertiary institutions has resulted in perennial industrial actions on the campuses.

In the universities for instance, the academic staff union- ASUU, has repeatedly accused the government of not paying its members earned academic allowances, while also calling for the review of these earnings.

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Meanwhile, almost all Nigerian public universities hiked their fees last year, citing the increasing cost of maintaining the institution’s facilities and the lack of adequate funding by the government.

Qosim Suleiman is a reporter at Premium Times in partnership with Report for the World, which matches local newsrooms with talented emerging journalists to report on under-covered issues around the globe