₦airaland Forum

Why do many young Nigerians believe the only way to succeed is to leave home?

Every day, thousands dream about Europe as the ultimate escape route — better roads, stable electricity, cleaner systems, stronger currency, and a more comfortable life. On social media, it often looks perfect. People post pictures in winter jackets, airports, clean streets, and foreign apartments, making it seem like life automatically becomes successful once you leave Nigeria.

But behind many of those pictures is another story nobody talks about enough.

The truth is that only a small percentage of Nigerians abroad are genuinely thriving financially and emotionally. Yes, some people have built successful careers, businesses, and stable lives overseas, and their success deserves respect. But for the overwhelming majority, life abroad is often a constant cycle of survival, bills, and pressure.

Many Nigerians abroad are living paycheck to paycheck. After rent, taxes, transportation, childcare, insurance, and endless expenses, there is little left. Some work exhausting shifts in warehouses, factories, care homes, or cleaning jobs for years with no real ownership or long-term security to show for it. Some are constantly anxious about visas, residency papers, documentation renewals, or immigration status. Behind the smiling pictures online are sleepless nights, loneliness, depression, and fear of uncertainty.

Some people spend ten or twenty years abroad and still cannot confidently say they have built a lasting foundation either there or back home in Nigeria. No land. No investment. No business. No real roots. Just survival from one month to another.

And as time passes, deeper worries begin to appear.

Many quietly wonder what old age will look like for them abroad. Will their children, raised fully in Western culture, still value family the same way Nigerians traditionally do? Will those children want to care for them personally when they grow old, or will they eventually end up alone in care homes, visited occasionally out of obligation rather than love and connection?

Some even worry about where they will finally be buried. Back home in Nigeria among their ancestors and family roots? Or in a foreign land where their children may feel more attached to than the country their parents came from?

These are painful conversations many people avoid having openly.

Meanwhile, back in Nigeria, despite all the frustration and hardship, there are people quietly building lives with purpose, ownership, and legacy.

Nigeria is still one of the biggest untapped markets in the world. In a country with over 200 million people, almost every problem is a business opportunity waiting for someone brave enough to solve it. While many people are focused on escaping, others are building companies, brands, farms, schools, tech startups, transport businesses, and real estate portfolios.

People behind companies in Nigeria that are unicorn, like fintechs, trading firms etc and did not wait for another country to hand them opportunities. They saw possibilities inside Nigeria and built around them.

Even in entertainment, we have seen many become global names while remaining deeply connected to their Nigerian identity and culture.

And beyond celebrities, there are ordinary Nigerians who may never trend online but are building quietly every day. The man who owns a growing supermarket chain in Aba. The woman running a successful fashion business in Lagos. The young developer earning remotely from Nigeria. The farmer expanding his land year after year. These people may not post foreign pictures online, but they are creating something solid and lasting.

Of course, this does not mean Europe is bad or that nobody should travel. There are Nigerians abroad doing incredibly well, building wealth, raising healthy families, and creating opportunities. Some people genuinely need to leave for education, healthcare, security, or a better quality of life.

But maybe the real question is this:

Should success only be measured by leaving Nigeria?

Because sometimes, the person staying back to build a business, create jobs, buy land, support family, preserve culture, and leave behind a legacy may actually be building a richer life than someone abroad living from shift to shift with nothing truly theirs.

At the end of the day, earning a paycheck is one thing. Building something that outlives you is another.

Build wetin?

Sdvbjjjjjjjj

here to learn.

Agriculture is life

Repost👇

EmperorIsaac:
Hmmmm...they will not hear. Let them have their own experiences.

Life is all about experiences and those experiences make us wiser and sharper, don't you think?

Jamaican woman compares Canada to a plantation.

"You're a slave to your house

....and its cold in May. Im sick of it." pic.twitter.com/RUtfzOhs3C

— Tablesalt 🇨🇦🇺🇸 (@Tablesalt13) May 12, 2026

Going to another country is never easy. Most people don't realize that being successful in an environment you didn't grow up in, weren't raised in and don't understand 100% is not easy. Traveling will test you. It will test your limits. It will test your survival mode. It will challenge you. Some overcome these challenges, some don't and if we don't try, we can never know. You can listen to the stories of Sola Sobowale or Don Jazzy. They faced challenges and came back home. Some people will see grace abroad, some people will have to see shege then come back home to see grace. Some people will be seeing grace anyhow anywhere like MTN, everywhere you go
One of the things I have learned from travel is that it is a school for learning in life. I would not discourage anyone from facing life challenges. Comfort sometimes makes us slack and I have seen this in life. That's why the migrants always loook like a threat, their thirst for survival is more than the ordinary water you are comfortable drinking


https://www.tiktok.com/video/7364101673465302288


Another POV for internal japa 👇

SixSeven:
Something that has not been mentioned is the cost of living in the North. That's what most southerners see but don't understand up North. It's why your aboki shining your shoe is able to have 4 wives after he gathers some money. It's why they come to Lagos and anywhere there is economic opportunities to hustle and take it back. Their own japa is within so the way we say $40,000 can not do much in US, it may be able to do a lot elsewhere. Not justifying irresponsibility but that's one lens most people don't look at. What's the cost of living in the North?

The best option is to stay and build your life here, however, the choice is yours

Leave and watch from afar. APC is the weapon fashioned against Nigerians and has been destroying the economy of Nigeria since 2015. Nigeria kills dreams!

On a serious note, OP complained about people struggling abroad. There's nothing wrong with that as far you have a plan and live in a system where things work.

Jensen Huang, the CEO of Nvidia, washed toilets to survive when he moved to America. Today, he's running a company worth over $4 trillion. This is something NOBODY can achieve in Nigeria.

This is a powerful perspective — and it touches a nerve because it challenges a deeply romanticized narrative.

The “japa = automatic success” mindset didn’t appear out of nowhere. It was built by years of broken systems in Nigeria — unstable electricity, insecurity, weak institutions, unemployment, inflation, and a currency that keeps losing value. For many young Nigerians, leaving feels less like ambition and more like self-preservation.

And to be fair, many are not chasing luxury. They’re chasing predictability.

The appeal of countries like United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, or United States is simple:

systems that work

salaries with stronger purchasing power

access to healthcare

safer environments

clearer career paths

dignity in basic living standards


That desire is understandable.

But where your write-up becomes important is exposing the illusion that relocation automatically solves the deeper problem of purpose, ownership, and fulfillment.

Many people confuse earning in a stable system with building wealth.

They are not the same thing.

A Nigerian doctor in United Kingdom may earn more than one in Nigeria, but after taxes, rent, debt, and lifestyle costs, they may still feel trapped.

A warehouse worker in Canada may post nice pictures online while battling depression, double shifts, and immigration stress.

And social media amplifies this illusion because people rarely post their struggles. Nobody posts:

visa rejection fears

loneliness

cultural isolation

failing marriages

elderly parents they can’t care for back home

identity crises in raising children abroad


Instead, they post airport photos and snow.

That said, staying in Nigeria is not automatically noble either. The country can be brutally difficult for entrepreneurs and professionals trying to build. Many brilliant people leave because the environment actively punishes ambition.

The real issue is that too many young Nigerians see only two extreme narratives:

“Stay in Nigeria and suffer.”
or
“Leave Nigeria and become successful.”

Reality is far more nuanced.

There are Nigerians building billion-naira companies at home — think Flutterwave, Moniepoint, Paystack, and Interswitch.

There are creatives like Burna Boy, Wizkid, and Davido who built global brands rooted in Nigerian identity.

There are also Nigerians abroad quietly building real wealth through medicine, tech, finance, logistics, and entrepreneurship.

Neither path guarantees success.

Neither path guarantees failure.

The real differentiator is this:

Are you escaping, or are you strategically positioning yourself?

Leaving Nigeria without a plan can simply relocate your struggles.

Staying in Nigeria without vision can also trap you in stagnation.

The smartest people often think beyond geography entirely:

earn globally

invest intentionally

build assets

solve real problems

maintain strong relationships

create something that survives them


Sometimes that means relocating.

Sometimes that means staying.

Sometimes it means doing both — earning abroad while building at home.

Success should not be measured by visa stamps.

It should be measured by freedom, ownership, peace of mind, impact, and legacy.

And that final line you wrote captures it perfectly:

“At the end of the day, earning a paycheck is one thing. Building something that outlives you is another.”

That’s the conversation more young Nigerians need to have.

ariesbull:
Why do many young Nigerians believe the only way to succeed is to leave home?

Every day, thousands dream about Europe as the ultimate escape route — better roads, stable electricity, cleaner systems, stronger currency, and a more comfortable life. On social media, it often looks perfect. People post pictures in winter jackets, airports, clean streets, and foreign apartments, making it seem like life automatically becomes successful once you leave Nigeria.

But behind many of those pictures is another story nobody talks about enough.

The truth is that only a small percentage of Nigerians abroad are genuinely thriving financially and emotionally. Yes, some people have built successful careers, businesses, and stable lives overseas, and their success deserves respect. But for the overwhelming majority, life abroad is often a constant cycle of survival, bills, and pressure.

Many Nigerians abroad are living paycheck to paycheck. After rent, taxes, transportation, childcare, insurance, and endless expenses, there is little left. Some work exhausting shifts in warehouses, factories, care homes, or cleaning jobs for years with no real ownership or long-term security to show for it. Some are constantly anxious about visas, residency papers, documentation renewals, or immigration status. Behind the smiling pictures online are sleepless nights, loneliness, depression, and fear of uncertainty.

Some people spend ten or twenty years abroad and still cannot confidently say they have built a lasting foundation either there or back home in Nigeria. No land. No investment. No business. No real roots. Just survival from one month to another.

And as time passes, deeper worries begin to appear.

Many quietly wonder what old age will look like for them abroad. Will their children, raised fully in Western culture, still value family the same way Nigerians traditionally do? Will those children want to care for them personally when they grow old, or will they eventually end up alone in care homes, visited occasionally out of obligation rather than love and connection?

Some even worry about where they will finally be buried. Back home in Nigeria among their ancestors and family roots? Or in a foreign land where their children may feel more attached to than the country their parents came from?

These are painful conversations many people avoid having openly.

Meanwhile, back in Nigeria, despite all the frustration and hardship, there are people quietly building lives with purpose, ownership, and legacy.

Nigeria is still one of the biggest untapped markets in the world. In a country with over 200 million people, almost every problem is a business opportunity waiting for someone brave enough to solve it. While many people are focused on escaping, others are building companies, brands, farms, schools, tech startups, transport businesses, and real estate portfolios.

People behind companies in Nigeria that are unicorn, like fintechs, trading firms etc and did not wait for another country to hand them opportunities. They saw possibilities inside Nigeria and built around them.

Even in entertainment, we have seen many become global names while remaining deeply connected to their Nigerian identity and culture.

And beyond celebrities, there are ordinary Nigerians who may never trend online but are building quietly every day. The man who owns a growing supermarket chain in Aba. The woman running a successful fashion business in Lagos. The young developer earning remotely from Nigeria. The farmer expanding his land year after year. These people may not post foreign pictures online, but they are creating something solid and lasting.

Of course, this does not mean Europe is bad or that nobody should travel. There are Nigerians abroad doing incredibly well, building wealth, raising healthy families, and creating opportunities. Some people genuinely need to leave for education, healthcare, security, or a better quality of life.

But maybe the real question is this:

Should success only be measured by leaving Nigeria?

Because sometimes, the person staying back to build a business, create jobs, buy land, support family, preserve culture, and leave behind a legacy may actually be building a richer life than someone abroad living from shift to shift with nothing truly theirs.

At the end of the day, earning a paycheck is one thing. Building something that outlives you is another.

You better leave. Go and be a skilled worker there. Get their certification.

Wetin u dey build

Better go to a sane environment, for your own sanity.

How many times will you guys ask this confusing question?
Is there an agenda behind this?
If you check whatever you are going to be paid for whatever work you are going to do in Europe and that is better and bigger than whatever they pay you in Nigeria, move!
Let's not get into the uninspiring talk about the standard of living in the two areas, because there are no basis for comparison.
It is that simple..

The fear of fulani herdsmen and bandits is enough reason to run away from Nigeria

Straits of Homous will be great to go through. Europe is far better than here.

You'll rarely see an American ask this type of question.

That should give you all the answers you need.

How many stories do you want to build?

They will not allow you build anything .. Tinubu that talks say emilokan you go con tell say u get idea

Nothing to say. May God forgive those of you who do this.

Hopefully this analogy helps.

Two rivers

River 1,
Average sized river, access road, flood prevention technology, regulation against pollution, consistent inspection of the well being of the water creatures by marine biologists etc

River 2,
Massive river, narrow access road, covered with bush and possible hide out for dangerous animals, quicksand, sewage connected to it, flooding, etc


Where would you like to fish?
Making a living shouldn’t be a call to one’s demise.

The Nigerian government has failed in creating a safe environment for people to access their various sources of livelihood.

There's no hope for anyone in Nigeria. Travel out. No more way for poor people.

ariesbull:
Why do many young Nigerians believe the only way to succeed is to leave home?

Every day, thousands dream about Europe as the ultimate escape route — better roads, stable electricity, cleaner systems, stronger currency, and a more comfortable life. On social media, it often looks perfect. People post pictures in winter jackets, airports, clean streets, and foreign apartments, making it seem like life automatically becomes successful once you leave Nigeria.

But behind many of those pictures is another story nobody talks about enough.

The truth is that only a small percentage of Nigerians abroad are genuinely thriving financially and emotionally. Yes, some people have built successful careers, businesses, and stable lives overseas, and their success deserves respect. But for the overwhelming majority, life abroad is often a constant cycle of survival, bills, and pressure.

Many Nigerians abroad are living paycheck to paycheck. After rent, taxes, transportation, childcare, insurance, and endless expenses, there is little left. Some work exhausting shifts in warehouses, factories, care homes, or cleaning jobs for years with no real ownership or long-term security to show for it. Some are constantly anxious about visas, residency papers, documentation renewals, or immigration status. Behind the smiling pictures online are sleepless nights, loneliness, depression, and fear of uncertainty.

Some people spend ten or twenty years abroad and still cannot confidently say they have built a lasting foundation either there or back home in Nigeria. No land. No investment. No business. No real roots. Just survival from one month to another.

And as time passes, deeper worries begin to appear.

Many quietly wonder what old age will look like for them abroad. Will their children, raised fully in Western culture, still value family the same way Nigerians traditionally do? Will those children want to care for them personally when they grow old, or will they eventually end up alone in care homes, visited occasionally out of obligation rather than love and connection?

Some even worry about where they will finally be buried. Back home in Nigeria among their ancestors and family roots? Or in a foreign land where their children may feel more attached to than the country their parents came from?

These are painful conversations many people avoid having openly.

Meanwhile, back in Nigeria, despite all the frustration and hardship, there are people quietly building lives with purpose, ownership, and legacy.

Nigeria is still one of the biggest untapped markets in the world. In a country with over 200 million people, almost every problem is a business opportunity waiting for someone brave enough to solve it. While many people are focused on escaping, others are building companies, brands, farms, schools, tech startups, transport businesses, and real estate portfolios.

People behind companies in Nigeria that are unicorn, like fintechs, trading firms etc and did not wait for another country to hand them opportunities. They saw possibilities inside Nigeria and built around them.

Even in entertainment, we have seen many become global names while remaining deeply connected to their Nigerian identity and culture.

And beyond celebrities, there are ordinary Nigerians who may never trend online but are building quietly every day. The man who owns a growing supermarket chain in Aba. The woman running a successful fashion business in Lagos. The young developer earning remotely from Nigeria. The farmer expanding his land year after year. These people may not post foreign pictures online, but they are creating something solid and lasting.

Of course, this does not mean Europe is bad or that nobody should travel. There are Nigerians abroad doing incredibly well, building wealth, raising healthy families, and creating opportunities. Some people genuinely need to leave for education, healthcare, security, or a better quality of life.

But maybe the real question is this:

Should success only be measured by leaving Nigeria?

Because sometimes, the person staying back to build a business, create jobs, buy land, support family, preserve culture, and leave behind a legacy may actually be building a richer life than someone abroad living from shift to shift with nothing truly theirs.

At the end of the day, earning a paycheck is one thing. Building something that outlives you is another.

If the something you're staying back to build won't be giving you like 150-200k (on a not very very fruity days) a month, my guy move .

BUT

Get purpose why you dy move. No go move go another man land without purpose.

Some occurrences in some foreign countries has made it necessary to have a plan B at home. It's now foolishness to travel overseas without any backup plan. South African xenophobic attacks and all manner of tribal or racial discrimination all show that failure to have a second plan can push someone from grace to grass. East or west, home is the best.

ariesbull:
Why do many young Nigerians believe the only way to succeed is to leave home?

Every day, thousands dream about Europe as the ultimate escape route — better roads, stable electricity, cleaner systems, stronger currency, and a more comfortable life. On social media, it often looks perfect. People post pictures in winter jackets, airports, clean streets, and foreign apartments, making it seem like life automatically becomes successful once you leave Nigeria.

But behind many of those pictures is another story nobody talks about enough.

The truth is that only a small percentage of Nigerians abroad are genuinely thriving financially and emotionally. Yes, some people have built successful careers, businesses, and stable lives overseas, and their success deserves respect. But for the overwhelming majority, life abroad is often a constant cycle of survival, bills, and pressure.

Many Nigerians abroad are living paycheck to paycheck. After rent, taxes, transportation, childcare, insurance, and endless expenses, there is little left. Some work exhausting shifts in warehouses, factories, care homes, or cleaning jobs for years with no real ownership or long-term security to show for it. Some are constantly anxious about visas, residency papers, documentation renewals, or immigration status. Behind the smiling pictures online are sleepless nights, loneliness, depression, and fear of uncertainty.

Some people spend ten or twenty years abroad and still cannot confidently say they have built a lasting foundation either there or back home in Nigeria. No land. No investment. No business. No real roots. Just survival from one month to another.

And as time passes, deeper worries begin to appear.

Many quietly wonder what old age will look like for them abroad. Will their children, raised fully in Western culture, still value family the same way Nigerians traditionally do? Will those children want to care for them personally when they grow old, or will they eventually end up alone in care homes, visited occasionally out of obligation rather than love and connection?

Some even worry about where they will finally be buried. Back home in Nigeria among their ancestors and family roots? Or in a foreign land where their children may feel more attached to than the country their parents came from?

These are painful conversations many people avoid having openly.

Meanwhile, back in Nigeria, despite all the frustration and hardship, there are people quietly building lives with purpose, ownership, and legacy.

Nigeria is still one of the biggest untapped markets in the world. In a country with over 200 million people, almost every problem is a business opportunity waiting for someone brave enough to solve it. While many people are focused on escaping, others are building companies, brands, farms, schools, tech startups, transport businesses, and real estate portfolios.

People behind companies in Nigeria that are unicorn, like fintechs, trading firms etc and did not wait for another country to hand them opportunities. They saw possibilities inside Nigeria and built around them.

Even in entertainment, we have seen many become global names while remaining deeply connected to their Nigerian identity and culture.

And beyond celebrities, there are ordinary Nigerians who may never trend online but are building quietly every day. The man who owns a growing supermarket chain in Aba. The woman running a successful fashion business in Lagos. The young developer earning remotely from Nigeria. The farmer expanding his land year after year. These people may not post foreign pictures online, but they are creating something solid and lasting.

Of course, this does not mean Europe is bad or that nobody should travel. There are Nigerians abroad doing incredibly well, building wealth, raising healthy families, and creating opportunities. Some people genuinely need to leave for education, healthcare, security, or a better quality of life.

But maybe the real question is this:

Should success only be measured by leaving Nigeria?

Because sometimes, the person staying back to build a business, create jobs, buy land, support family, preserve culture, and leave behind a legacy may actually be building a richer life than someone abroad living from shift to shift with nothing truly theirs.

At the end of the day, earning a paycheck is one thing. Building something that outlives you is another.

Deciding to jettison my UK japa plans when all my friends were pro japa I think is one of the most important decisions I have made in my life

My friends were gone and 6months later the pressure was huge on me to move too.

I applied, got admission and had everything ready to go. I was making 500k monthly but then I paused and asked myself what kind of life do I want for myself?

Do I want to live a life of working and being scared of change of immigration laws or a life where I have freedom to be myself.

Do I want to go wash old people's butts and pack vomit or push myself here to be better and travel to visit when I want.

At the end of several questions asked to myself I arrived at my truth. Japa is not for me now so I pulled the plug and stopped the process, my friends were shocked .

Fast forward to 4yrs later since then, I make over 3m monthly and also equivalent of 500k monthly from mutual funds.

I didn't have to go wash butts and never will do that

What shocks me the most is that in all my travels to Europe is the people I see most on the streets are Indians, Chinese and Bangladeshi people. Well it's non of my business!!

To escape flogging by bandits and be kidnapped for 6 months and not to shout UP nepa etc.

Go to the white man's land and get exposure, money, experience and tech and come back to Nigeria to set up something. The exposure abroad is very vital. When you are back in Nigeria, hire your armed security and protect yourself. As long as you have a document that allows you to cross borders easily, you can settle back in Nigeria and be a pioneer in your line of business.

SmartPolician:
Leave and watch from afar. APC is the weapon fashioned against Nigerians and has been destroying the economy of Nigeria since 2015.

Yet Anambra is one of the worst states in Nigeria

It depends ariesbull, if it’s scholarship then yes for me, otherwise stay back home and build with the money you Intend traveling with. My friend spent over 15million to secure admission to UK, since there he has been complaining about everything and right now he is a care worker and he says it’s not easy, from what he said, the system is rigged to make sure you are over there at least 8-10 years before you can happily say I’m in 🇬🇧. I just asked him one question “ what if you had got a house, marry and double and start building your hustle with your wife genuinely, in that 10 years, which will make you feel more happy, uk or Naija. He was down but I just had to encourage him that now that he is there, he must prepare to do any dirty job to gather money and come back home so long it’s not illegal. Last we spoke he has gone incommunicado on Naija girls, said once they hear abroad billings follow.

Europe is not the only place to travel to. New Zealand and Australia are there. These two faraway lands have lots of opportunities that you need to research on. And if it must be Europe, go to countries like Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Switzerland . Exposure matters a lot.

I have a Aunt in the UK that told me she regretted travelling to the UK.
She is a matron.
She said that with her connection back then in Nigeria, she would have had her own hospital if she had stayed back.
Because she studied here, worked at university teaching hospital Lagos for sometime before travelling.
Naomi left home for the land of Moab and later Boaz who happened to remain in the land became her savior.
May we make the right decisions

99% poor Nigerians will tell you japa is the only way but in reality over 90% Nigerians abroad are not doing very only less than 10% are doing well which many from the 10% are politicians children and few well educated people, the rest are struggling that was the reason I did not travel when I had the opportunity then because I was making a lot of money here in Nigeria but now I might think about it though.

Many of them are into content creators because that the only thing that pays well now if not nothing is happening here .

Only the rich people can afford to travel during Christmas many people can’t afford to travel some same can’t afford to come to Nigeria now .

Mumuuuu talk , after you finish building …. TINUBU go Dey front Dey wait you.

Dey play

Well my little opinion is japa if you can
Dont bother building anything that wont sustain you here.
Have you ever try having a company here ... have you visited ministries to make provision for right of production and that,
My man its better you go and work and send in the money to start
You have to do something far from sin to make things work here
So japa abeg if you can work you will make it but if tou are lazy abeg stay back at your home

MadPolitician:
How many times will you guys ask this confusing question?
Is there an agenda behind this?
If you check whatever you are going to be paid for whatever work you are going to do in Europe and that is better and bigger than whatever they pay you in Nigeria, move!
Let's not get into the uninspiring talk about the standard of living in the two areas, because there are no basis for comparison.
It is that simple..

Money u get to spend at the end of the day on bills.