The Talents We Train, The Talents We Lose: Nigeria’s Growing Brain Drain

As doctors, engineers and other skilled professionals seek opportunities abroad, questions remain about what Nigeria is losing as a nation — and what it must do to make staying worthwhile.

Nigeria is producing skilled professionals, but an increasing number are looking beyond its borders for opportunities to build their careers.

From doctors and engineers to other professionals, the search for better working conditions, stronger infrastructure, competitive salaries and career growth is changing the country’s workforce demography.

This movement of skilled professionals abroad, commonly known as “brain drain”, has become more than an individual decision to seek greener pastures.

It is increasingly a question of what Nigeria loses when highly trained professionals leave — and whether the country can create enough reasons for them to stay.

Recent research illustrates the scale of the problem, particularly in the healthcare sector.

A 15-year study of Nigerian medical and dental graduates found that 48.9 per cent of the cohort had migrated within 15 years of qualification.

The study identified insecurity, concerns about their children’s future, limited career development and poor remuneration among the major factors pushing doctors and dentists to leave.

Why professionals leave

For Oyindamola Ajose, an engineer, the reasons many Nigerian engineers seek opportunities abroad are varied, including career growth, better salaries and improved infrastructure.

“At the end of the day, it’s really about having an easier, better and more fulfilling life,” Ajose said.

Beyond salaries, she pointed to differences in education and infrastructure.

According to her, professionals abroad often have access to advanced equipment, laboratories and research opportunities that support innovation and professional development.

She also noted that engineers can gain greater financial stability and purchasing power.

The knowledge Nigeria loses

Ajose believes brain drain has created a significant gap in Nigeria’s technical expertise.

“We have lost a lot of subject matter experts,” she said, explaining that younger engineers and students can lose valuable opportunities for mentorship when experienced professionals leave.

She added that the loss of local expertise can contribute to delays and increased costs on some projects, as expatriates may be brought in to perform roles that Nigerian professionals could previously handle.

When doctors leave

Dr Ayobami Kuyoro believes the issue should not simply be described as doctors leaving Nigeria. She argues that healthcare professionals are responding to a society that is increasingly unable to compete for the talent it has trained.

“The migration of our healthcare professionals is not merely a story about people leaving Nigeria. It is feedback from the system,” Dr Kuyoro said.

A 2025 analysis put Nigeria’s physician density at roughly 3.8 doctors per 10,000 people, while research has linked migration to insecurity, poor remuneration, limited career development and dissatisfaction.

Kuyoro explained that when experienced doctors leave, the country loses more than the positions they occupied. It also loses clinical experience, mentorship, institutional knowledge and specialist capacity.

Those who remain may face heavier workloads, longer waiting times and increased pressure.

“People have the right to pursue better opportunities. Our responsibility is to build a Nigeria that gives them compelling reasons to stay,” she said.

More than money

While better pay is a major attraction abroad, the interviewees believe the problem goes beyond enhanced salaries.

Kuyoro said professionals also consider whether they can work safely, access the equipment they need, develop professionally and see a future for themselves.

Ajose believes Nigeria needs reforms across education, industry, infrastructure and finance.

She called for quality education, relevant training, internships and research opportunities, stronger support for Nigerian engineering firms, competitive salaries and technology hubs where young engineers can develop ideas with access to funding.

The other side of migration

For Damilola Olori, a business professional, the decision to relocate should not automatically be regarded as a definition of success.

She acknowledged that unemployment, low wages and the rising cost of living influence people’s decisions to leave.

“I don’t want to ‘japa’. I want to build my career in Nigeria and still earn in foreign currencies by working with international companies and clients,” Olori said.

She warned that comparing a foreign salary with its naira equivalent can conceal the reality of living expenses abroad, including housing, taxes, transportation, childcare and insurance.

Some migrants may also take jobs unrelated to their qualifications while trying to establish themselves in a new country.

Can Nigeria keep its talent?

The three interviewees agree that Nigeria must address the conditions encouraging skilled professionals to leave.

Kuyoro called for stronger healthcare financing, improved infrastructure, better remuneration, specialist training and professional development, alongside greater private-sector involvement.

Ajose said reforms are needed in education, industry, infrastructure and finance.

Olori called for better compensation, career progression and healthier workplaces, alongside improvements in electricity, transportation, security and economic stability.

Technology has also created another possibility: Nigerians can increasingly work for international companies and clients without necessarily relocating.

For Olori, this offers a way to pursue global opportunities while remaining in Nigeria.

Ajose also believes Nigerians who have relocated can still contribute through investment, start-ups, employment creation and knowledge transfer.

Kuyoro argues that Nigeria should think beyond brain drain and embrace “brain circulation”, where professionals abroad return, invest, teach, mentor or provide specialist services remotely.

Age-old problem

Incidentally, brain drain in Nigeria is not a recent phenomenon. It took root in the 1980s when many lecturers and medical personnel began leaving the country in large numbers, with the Middle East then emerging as a preferred destination.

Speaking to a journalist, Tunde Sulaiman recalled how he met Dr Seyi Roberts, former Head of the Department of Dentistry at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), in Saudi Arabia while covering the FIFA U-20 World Cup.

The meeting was particularly memorable because Dr Roberts had treated Sulaiman at LUTH the previous year.

Dr Roberts, who sadly passed away some years ago, had been appointed to head the same department at King Fahd University in Riyadh.

“Taking me around the glittering edifice, Dr Roberts said: ‘Tunde, you remember when you came to see me in LUTH, you had to wait because only two out of the eight dental chairs were working? Here, we have 24 state-of-the-art chairs!’” Sulaiman recalled.

In fact, the chairs were so new that Roberts showed him the voluminous manual he was reading to understand how to operate them.

He also explained how he had received a modest research grant while at LUTH, compared with the $50,000 research grant available to him at King Fahd University.

“At a point, the administrator called to ask if the grant was not enough after he learnt that I was not utilising it fast enough. I had to explain to him that I was more than satisfied with the grant,” Sulaiman quoted Roberts as saying.

Roberts also explained that although he was better paid in Saudi Arabia than he had been at LUTH, salary was not his primary reason for leaving Nigeria.

“Yes, while the salary is attractive, my main reason was my frustration with not being able to fulfil my potential due to lack of equipment and the constant struggle to even get money to run the department,” he explained.

He admitted that it was not easy uprooting his family from the comfort of a country he knew for the uncertainty of moving to a new environment about which he knew very little.

The real question

Brain drain is ultimately not just a story about Nigerians leaving. It is a story about why they leave, what they find abroad and what Nigeria must change if it wants to retain its skilled workforce.

Migration is a personal choice, and people have the right to pursue opportunities that improve their lives.

The greater challenge is creating a country where leaving is not the only attractive option.

The professionals leaving Nigeria are not merely statistics. They are doctors who have spent years training to save lives, engineers capable of building and innovating, and other skilled workers whose expertise can contribute significantly to national development.

Kuyoro puts the issue in a question that captures the heart of the debate: “How do we make staying a competitive choice?”

Nigeria has invested years in training its people. The next challenge is ensuring that it gives them enough reasons to stay and put their training to good use in developing the country.

© New Telegraph