Not a few people believe that the trans-Atlantic slave trade, which began as early as the 1400s, brought about a system that was hugely commercialised. This being the case, the agitating issue of concern is if the contemporary mass exodus of Nigerian workforce to alien economies is a good economic decision or a gleeful saunter to modern slavery? To attempt this question, it is pertinent we take a look at slavery as it was in the 15th century, how it is now in the present age (if it is true that there is) and if there is any semblance of the past in the present that may make everyone call for caution.
The fact remains that slavery existed in Africa before the arrival of the Europeans and those from American shores.
Harvesting of able-bodied men and women through inter-tribal and communal confrontations by warlords were existing pastimes in Africa. But as demand for labour and quests for wealth grew, demands and supplies of enslaved workforce became the order of the day. Though war expeditions and capturing of able-bodied men and women as slaves were regarded as spoils of war among the warriors, the story of Njinga Mbandi (aka Nzinga and Ana Njinga) who was born around 1582 reveals that some powerful women were not left out of the human harvesting for economic gains. Njinga Mbandi, the oldest daughter of Mbandi a Ngola Kiluanji, the king of Ndongo (present-day central Angola) was credited with exhibition of great physical prowess, thanks to her father who permitted her to train with the army). According to report, Njinga quickly gained notoriety amongst the invading Europeans, especially the Portuguese, both for her “ferocious stance against the imposition of Portuguese colonialism”. Njinga was reputed to have kept both male and female concubines, married multiple husbands, dressed as a man and insisted on being referred to as king and not queen. To cap, she was also notorious during her time for her involvement in the slave trade.
In the 15th century, the world was shared between Portugal and Spain. Portugal had a monopoly on trade in West Africa and Spain the colonial right over the New World in its search for land and gold. Queen Isabella invested in Christopher Columbus’s exploration to bolster her wealth. With her rejection of the enslavement of Native Americans, direct shipment of captives from Africa for trade as human commodities in the Spanish colonies in the Americas was authorized. Eventually other European nations such as Netherlands, France, Denmark and England joined to seek economic and geopolitical power in trade and exchanging merchandise and humans along the West African coasts. Their demand for slave labour was so enormous that these traffickers and their agents searched far inland, with powerful African warlords and community leaders exchanging enslaved humans for things like alcohol, mirrors, beads and cloths.
Though slavery was abolished long ago, what is happening in the modern day has convinced not a few that the noxious trade is alive and operating under a new guise. The slave trade that was abolished throughout British colonies in 1837 (following an Act of Parliament passed in 1807) was based on forced harvesting of African workforce, an act of dehumanisation that was tacitly permitted to continue for more than 100 years in Nigeria till 1940s. However, the modern day slavery is directly the opposite, the other side of the coin, whereby able-bodied men and women by themselves walk into slavery in foreign lands in their quest for economic well-being and better living standards. This would hardly have happened but for the poor economic situations in their own native lands. In the latest report of the World of Statistics, Nigeria has the highest global unemployment rate (close to 90 million (40%) jobless people – KPMG report) followed by South Africa and Iran.
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With highfaluting promises of economic gains, many are tricked into sex trafficking, forced labor, domestic servitude, bonded labor or debt bondage, forced child labor, child sex trafficking, unlawful recruitment and use of child soldiers. These are some of the ways modern day slavery are perpetrated. Not a few agents of slavery have been recruiting and transporting persons (male and female) across borders since the economic downturn became cancerous in Nigeria. They openly advertise their enterprises on radio until it becomes so rampant that government agencies started clamping on the recruitment activities. These appalling activities on one hand, quite a number of people have been using all means, rational and irrational to relocate to other perceived-better economies. Many abandoned their jobs to relocate their entire families in their search for good lives for their families. Also, the social media is awash with clips of those who perished at the Mediterranean sea, several whose corpses are washed to the shore. They are looking for good lives at all costs and taking risks not critically calculated. Is it really true that the job opportunities and economic gains Nigerians are hearing about in the developed economies real? It was reported of a banker who sold his two houses to move to Canada but three and half years later, he was lamenting how was he supposed to know that “things will not go as I planned”.
In preparation for the writing of this piece and to elicit responses, a social media kite about a caregiver job that will pay £3,000 a month and advertised by a recruitment agency was flown. In reality, the accompanying breakdown of costs showed a monthly deficit £276 if this person is to live according to his immediate plan without personal savings, change of clothing and other personal care. Not a few Nigerians are falling preys to this type of proposal or ‘friendly’ counsels, no thanks to an economy that is import dependent, an economy without production base to give employment to its teeming army of workforce. The economic situation has made many Nigerians to make decisions without critical thinking. They just want to ‘japa’, not first finding out if truly the ground is really wetter, and not slippery, at the other location. How about skills that will make you fit into the new economy, or are you going to be satisfied with working as unskilled labour, below the line? What basic costs must be incurred to live in the chosen place of work and to what extent can these costs be reduced? What mandatory expenses must be incurred and what impacts will these have on pay for your labour?
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Some migrants are lucky to find their feet but not a few who sold their businesses, like Ademola who sold his poultry business for N5 million to enable him raise N7.5million airfare or Kelechi who had to sell his three Toyota Sienna vehicles he used for transportation business for N3 million each just to enable him raise additional N9 million to afford airfare to Canada, are struggling to find their feet in the new economies. According to Davidson Omoregbe, “most (migrants) leaving now are doing so as a family and on the back of a job offer for one person. I used three, being the minimum of the father mother and one child. Truth is you need to earn more than 24k to live a decent life in the UK as a single person (location permitting).” The experience of several thousands of people is pure lamentations of a people by the river of Babylon. The rosy and glowing pictures painted are uninteresting and sheer gloom in reality. Akinwale, another respondent said, “since people already know this, they should pity the diaspora people by not asking for money from them, (since) everyone is struggling to make ends meet”.
Without mincing words, slavery in whatever guise has devastating consequences. The gains of some economies are the losses of others who are deprived of the bests among their workforce. Nigeria needs to revamp the country’s economy as fast as possible; and while this is ongoing, individuals needs to do more critical thinking to enable them have good grasp of realities. Adegboyega Bello, one of the respondents to the social media post, got the message very clearly: this piece is an advise that you should look carefully and critically before you leap.
. Emmanuel is a business planning consultant and founder of Leacent Incorporated Trustees, a network of entrepreneurs and group of cooperatives. He works with a team of international consultants to conceptualise and plan agribusiness and housing projects. As a certified trainer authorised to use the International Labour Organisation’s enterprise development modules, he trains entrepreneurs and organises workshops and seminars for potential and practising entrepreneurs as well as business managers and cooperatives. He also speaks and facilitates at leadership and management workshops on invitation. His book, Business Planning Made Easy: Step by Step Guide On How To Turn Your Idea To Profitable Business’ is the latest of the books authored by him. Tel.: +234(0)9068602954 (call and sms), +234(0)8023257707 (WhatsApp only)
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