The Chief of Mission to the Federal Republic of Nigeria, International Organisation for Migration, Laurent M.J. de Boeck, has said that the United Kingdom (UK) policy encouraging Teachers from Nigeria for employment in the UK is unfair.
He stated this while sharing his thoughts in an interview with the Punch newspaper about the organisation’s activities in Nigeria.
When asked, “The UK lately announced a policy encouraging teachers from other countries to come in. Don’t you think it’s a strategy used by some developed countries to steal Nigeria’s human capital and that of other developing nations?”
He said,
“I will agree with you. It’s unfair because it’s two different levels if you compare what they are offering and I will say that the government here should be aware that if they do not provide a conducive environment, those qualified people will go, so, it’s a natural choice, what people will do to seek better conditions.
“They may not consider all the social aspects, that they may not necessarily be well treated, they may lose their job, be homesick because that happens. We never really heard that much of those who have left, that they may not have employment but it’s not necessarily the panacea and in addition, they feel excluded and there may be some form of discrimination in some countries. So, there are different aspects of social lives, which they will lose by going.
“If we look exclusively at the economical side, maybe it’s better and indeed, it’s unfair. I think it will be a government to government agreement to look at how they can take them with a condition that they should come back and reinvest or gain after their expertise in the country and I think we should be advocating specifically on those two sectors, education and health, because these are key for both the social and health development of any nation. I cannot condemn (the UK policy) because it’s a freedom of people, it’s a choice but I will say that, yes, I find it unfair.”
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