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Nigeria @ 50: Policies and Practices for Diaspora Engagement

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Emigration Nations

Part of the book series: Migration, Diasporas and Citizenship Series ((MDC))

Abstract

Nigeria has a long history of migration internally, regionally and internationally. It is an important country to research in exploring the orientation and role of nation-states towards their emigrant communities. Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa and the sixth most populated country in the world with a population of 154 million (World Bank, 2010). It has an area of 923,000 square kilometres and has land borders with Benin, Niger, Chad and Cameroon. Nigeria has the second largest economy in the continent after South Africa. Nigeria is also a country of immigration and a transit country for migrants destined for other African countries, Europe, the Gulf States and beyond (Adepoju, 2005a; de Haas, 2006). In comparison to its total population, Nigeria has a fairly modest net migration rate and the stock of emigrants as a percentage of the population stands at 0.6 per cent (UNPD, 2009). This figure is seen as an underestimate because of the lack of reliable migration data within Nigeria and across sub-Saharan Africa more generally, and the porosity of Nigeria’s borders with neighbouring countries. The net migration rate also obscures important migration dynamics such as the high rate of skilled out-migration. These complex movements reverberate in policy initiatives targeting emigrants whose reception sits within a wider debate about the Nigerian state’s relationship to its citizens more generally.

There are no citizens in Nigeria, but only citizens of Nigeria

(Taiwo, 2004: 58)

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Authors
  1. Naluwembe Binaisa
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  1. University of Sussex, UK

    Michael Collyer

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© 2013 Naluwembe Binaisa

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Binaisa, N. (2013). Nigeria @ 50: Policies and Practices for Diaspora Engagement. In: Collyer, M. (eds) Emigration Nations. Migration, Diasporas and Citizenship Series. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137277107_10

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