ABUJA – The Nigerian government is finalising a landmark policy to create a legal and dignified pathway for the export of Nigerian professionals worldwide, the Director-General of the Nigerian Technical Aid Corps (NTAC), Hon. Yusuf Yakub, has announced.
The initiative, disclosed during a media briefing on Friday to mark Yakub’s two-year tenure, is designed to formally harness the nation’s human capital, generate foreign revenue, and curb the dangers of irregular migration, popularly known as the ‘Japa syndrome’.
Yakub revealed that the Ministry of Justice is already drafting a framework agreement for the programme, which will see Nigeria strategically export skilled labour to friendly nations, mirroring successful models used by countries like the Philippines.
“One of the new policies I came in with is to turn NTAC into a hub for the export of our manpower, not just for free, but also for money,” Yakub stated. “We are trying to introduce the sale of our manpower to discourage ‘Japa’, to discourage our citizens dying in the deserts and oceans, and most importantly, to create employment.”
From Soft Power to Economic Power
The NTAC, traditionally an instrument of Nigeria’s soft power diplomacy by providing free technical assistance to African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) countries, is now expanding its scope into economic diplomacy.
Yakub argued that the proven excellence of Nigerian professionals abroad makes this a viable economic strategy. He cited examples from The Gambia, where two Nigerians currently serve as Vice-Chancellors and two others as Deputy Vice-Chancellors of universities.
“Export of labour is as good as export of crude oil. And since we are blessed with this labour, NTAC has come up with this initiative,” he said.
The programme aims to place thousands of unemployed Nigerian graduates and NYSC members into dignified jobs internationally, thereby increasing diaspora remittances through formal channels.
New Frontiers and Current Deployments
The DG also announced that NTAC has opened new partnerships with four countries eager to import Nigerian expertise: Grenada in the Caribbean, and Equatorial Guinea, South Sudan, and Zanzibar in Africa.
He reported that the Corps has successfully deployed 396 volunteers to various countries in the last two years, with all previously deployed volunteers returning home safely. The agency expects to have over 450 professionals serving abroad by the end of the year, projecting a 90% budget performance despite economic headwinds.
Yakub said the agency is in talks with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) to extend the labour export programme beyond ACP nations to other parts of the world.
With the legal framework nearing completion, Nigeria is poised to strategically position its greatest asset—its people—on the global stage, turning brain drain into a structured brain export for national gain.
