Onumba.com, USA ——- Much has been said and written about why Nigerians in the Diaspora should invest back home. A medley of reasons come into play such as sentimental importance of helping to develop the homeland, no one but us will build Africa, helping to create jobs for the dangling youth and then the satisfaction that comes from knowing that you are contributing to building mama Africa, sort of giving back and all that good stuff. Even Africa’s richest dude brother Aliko Dangote is at the forefront of this global clarion call, using every chance he gets in the media to pitch the patriotic importance of investing in Nigeria.
But from my observation, not enough has been written or said about why many in the Diaspora are not heeding that call. Most of these folks do not see investing back home as their morning cup of coffee, preferring instead to either stash their vast dough in the bank’s savings account or perhaps they are already investing it where they reside.
But for those who opt to invest back home, there’s a choice involved, deciding the intensity of investment palatable for them. Some might invest minimally while others may opt to go all in to own a sprawling portfolio of investments.
It’s all good. I have identified top seven reasons why I believe Nigerians in the Diaspora shy away from investing in the motherland.
1. Trust issue
This is probably the lollapalooza of it all ——– the holy grail for why Nigerians do not invest back home. Finding people to trust is a profound obstacle. Nigeria is suffering from chronic scarcity of honest people. And I am not talking about the wicked, evil and shameful politicians and their well-chronicled thieveries and other shenanigans. No —— I am talking about the Nigerian hoi polloi ——— your relatives, neighbors, strangers, friends and extended family members. Those. As a dude who invests quite a bit in Nigeria, I know this conundrum from first-hand experience. Most Nigerians lack integrity and certainly not the kind of folks you need to establish a business. Nigeria is a country where there is a paucity of folks who would tell you the whole truth. Heck —— I am actually tempted to go as far as saying that some of these guys are mean-spirited and evil. Yep. They often intentionally waste your stuff and don’t think anything of it, believing that ‘Oga get money mek em go buy another one.’ And get this. Anytime you ask Nigerians to do stuff for you involving money, just know from the get-go that their fleecing faculty is already working overtime figuring out how to turn that encounter into a plum mini-enterprise, an opportunity to bamboozle you while pretending as though they are wholeheartedly helping you out. No matter what, most of these folks will find a way to profit from whatever errand they run for you. There’s absolutely no question about that, never mind that you are still going to compensate them for their work. This behavior is embedded deep in their mindset as well as in the way Nigerians generally behave, and there’s no getting around it. It is almost a given to the point where the next guy would not even see anything wrong with the skullduggerous conduct. Why? Because he would similarly exploit the opportunity if placed in the same situation.
2. Fundamental Lack of interest
Some of us just don’t care for Nigeria, let’s be brutally honest. But it is not necessarily a hopeless loathe for the country. No, it is just that it is not a place for them to live or sink in their hard earned money in pursuit of anything, investment included. These guys perceive themselves as being profoundly fortunate to be in the west or elsewhere, and would very much like to milk that fat cow for as long as possible. For most of these folks, the sentimental significance of returning to the motherland, to mama Africa, so to speak, does not sweepingly resonate with them. It does not jolt their sense of love and affection for the motherland. Having said all of that, however, I am going to opine that folks in this cabal are not many. Still, some of us for sure feel this way and want nothing to do with Africa. But feeling a sense of detachment from Africa is not always hopelessly entrenched. No, their stance could shift and loathe for Nigeria could significantly ebb in the future to pave a path to embracing the country. Check this out for example. There is a young dude from Ghana who moved to New York City and swore he would have absolutely nothing to do Africa ever again. But merely 15 years later, he ate his words for lunch. The same guy, after receiving a master’s degree in accounting, worked for one of the top (if not outright the top) accounting firms in the country, saved up plenty of dough and then moved back to Ghana where today, he is busy establishing a real estate company and a sprawling gated community, by himself, among a plethora of other investments. Oh, one more thing. The guy is now on a mission to convince Africans in the Diaspora to come back home and invest. How about that?
3. Lack of funds
Many Nigerians, for sure, are profoundly interested in investing back home, but just don’t have money quite yet to do so. I believe this is a large group where many of them are likely saving up now, enhancing their capacity and making plans to invest in Nigeria. They will get there. As a fierce advocate of investment in Africa, in this case, Nigeria, I love this group and encourage them to keep striving to realize their dream. There’s truly a great, great feeling you get from ownership as opposed to tagging along someone else’s paean and accomplishments. As a guy who has vastly explored these issues, you might not know this or even care, but the re-colonization of Africa is quietly underway. Yes. But don’t expect it to either be televised or follow the contours of master – servant relationship as it was with the British. No ——- it is taking an unusual form, better characterized as ‘abracadabra,’ ‘the more look you, the less you see,’ and before you know it, you will be chased to the sea. This is serious stuff, folks. The Chinese, the Lebanese, the Indians and other truculent foreigners are scrambling for Africa’s land and buying them up in galactic quantities. The remedy, for what it is worth at this cusp, is to invest in Nigeria, preferably purchasing land, as much of it as you can afford. It is one good way to hold on to something other than your wobbly knees. A word for the wise.
4. Security issue
This is a colossal hindrance. It is quite discouraging to establish a business in a country where you fear to even move around freely because kidnapping is pervasive and the government appears completely lackadaisical about solving the problem. And when faced with two or three of these identified issues, it truly becomes a hopeless situation for many Diasporans who would completely shut the door closed to any chance of investing in Nigeria. That reaction is quite understandable, but then again, as Igbo people would say, ‘Adi eji mgbagbu aghalu ogu.” Translation: Because there are casualties in wars is not justification to shrink from future conflicts.
5. Not everyone wants to be an entrepreneur
Sometimes, we forget that entrepreneurship is not for everyone, so we should not expect every Nigerian in the Diaspora to invest back home. Sure, investment, first and foremost, is a form of entrepreneurship unless of course you plan to chuck money into some else’s venture and sit back to watch your Return on Investment (ROI) roll in. An offshoot of this, however, brings to mind the fact that entrepreneurship involves risk taking, and this is precisely where so many folks fall flat on their belly. Business is just not for anyone who has fear of taking a risk. The paralysis of fear has kept so many folks from advancing themselves in their careers or venturing into desired businesses. One of my huge mentors is Billionaire business mogul Mark Cuban who said this, “Fear is a natural feeling, but it is also one of the worst enemies to success.” Spot on, Mark. So true. If you are not a businessman in the Diaspora because of fear and unwillingness to take a risk, well, just forget it. The fact that you are a native Nigerian will not bail you out of that innate predicament. No. Nigeria will not offer the magic wand that solves your problem of fear to start a business there. Phrased a bit differently, if fear and not being willing to take a risk kept you from establishing a business in the United States or elsewhere, then those same factors are precisely why you should not venture into business in Nigeria, either.
6. Investing already where they live
Possibly, some folks might show little or no interest in investing back home because they are already pouring money and efforts investing where they reside. While some Nigerians fall into this group, I believe the number is likely insignificant. Because often, people who are into investment are widely agog about it and typically would embrace an opportunity to expand their portfolio in their homeland, despite already investing where they reside. But again, funding is always a decisive factor along with security and trust issues.
7. Other priorities
There are folks who might show little or no interest in investing back home possibly because they are pursuing other priorities, say, focusing on sending their kids to college, building a house in the suburb or just living and enjoying themselves with no interest in seeking to conquer the world or save humanity or fight for animal rights, stuff like that. In short, these guys are pretty much content with their lives as they are and would not want to rock the boat.
