President of Global Migration Research Institute (GMRI) Dr. Williams Azuma Ijoma has cautioned youth against the dangers of illegal migration.
Ijoma stated this Tuesday at a national workshop on migration oraganised by GMRI in collaboration with Universal Migration Enlightenment Center (UMEC) with the theme: “Tackling Migration as a Diverse Problem for Sustainable Growth and Social Progress.”
He said the essence of the workshop was to enlightened the youth on the dangers associated with illegal migration.
He said: “Basically what we do is to enlighten the young ones on the dangers of irregular migration because some of them travel due to ignorance.
“We have cabals who derive joy is exploiting young ones. Some of them fall victims to sex addict and organ harvesters. Alot of them die in the desert and the high sea.
” I have seen skeleton in the desert. Some of them run out of water and food after a few weeks and they die of starvation. Out of a hundred people that travel illegally, only ten enter successfully.”
He urged government to provide job opportunities for youth so as to discourage them from risking their lives in search of greener pastures through illegal migration.
” If someone is gainfully employed he will not be thinking about going outside the country.
“I was privileged to talk with a Canadian Ambassador and he said people are talking about brain drain but Nigerians are the best hands we have.
“Government needs to do more in the area of education. They need to send a lot of young people abroad to understudy how it is done over there in developed countries.
“Some years ago, the Chinese sent their youths to Europe, Canada and America to understudy them in order to replicate their successes in the area of technology in China. Nigeria can borrow a leaf from the Chinese,” he said.
In her remarks, the Acting Comptroller General, Nigeria Immigration Service, Wuraola Adepoju advised youth who want to seek greener pastures abroad to do so through legal means.
Represented by Assistant Comptroller General (ACG) Ngozi Odikpo, she identified search for greener pastures, war, famine among others as reasons for migration.
