It’s not hard to see why the hashtag “#japa” has been one of the top 10 social media trends for the last two months. Since the beginning of the summer, the Japa wave has been luring away the cream of the crop from almost every field. The IT sector seems to be bearing the brunt of this storm.
Osaretin Victor Asemota, CEO and Investor in the Technology Industry, tweeted about the effects of japa on technology, specifically on technology used by Nigerian institutions. Inquire at banks in Nigeria. Not one of them is grinning. Where it hurts, Japa is pounding them. “In the IT division…”
To put it mildly, this tweet was only being polite. After a meeting of bank CEOs, Sterling Bank Plc’s Abubakar Suleiman told reporters, “So many of our extremely experienced people particularly in the field of software engineering are either leaving the sector or leaving the country.” He called it a “wonderful resignation.”
Last month, one of the top banks had a 48-hour outage of its mobile app, prompting a flood of online complaints and pleas for help. Banking facilities were flooded with disgruntled clients griping about lost cash, unfinished transactions, and waiting transfers. Dissatisfied with the outcome, they vented their frustrations on social media. It was discovered that the top techies at the bank who should have dealt with the mobile app’s difficulties were on the japa train and had departed the firm during the height of the crisis.
The above is a synopsis of what has become the reality of the Nigerian IT environment, which some have dubbed “the great resignation age and the japa wave.” The most important aspect is that the top minds in technology are leaving Japan for “greener pastures” in other nations. Some people have to go to school, while others have to look for work. Several influential people have shared their thoughts on the matter, as well as the impact it is having on commercial activities.
There are two potential solutions to the situation at hand. To begin, Nigeria needs more chances that are attractive enough to attract IT talent and pay them an amount that at least approaches the worldwide average for their expertise. Nonetheless, one can wonder how plausible this is.
The negative connotation of the word japa probably originates from its Yoruba meaning, which implies escape from an unpleasant circumstance. The migrants may see other nations as a “better bargain” due to factors such as superior educational opportunities, greater wages, and more generous welfare packages. The term “brain drain” was coined when it was noticed that most of the migrants had above-average intelligence. And that’s why boosting the available pool of talent is a secondary, and maybe preferable, option.
Chief Talent Officer Yemi Faseun wrote a post on LinkedIn on japa and the difficulty of retaining good employees.
In his in-depth piece, Faseun said, “Let’s NOT concentrate our emphasis on those who are departing. Prior to their formal resignation, they departed the company in secret.
The business expert, who has worked in a variety of fields over the last three decades, believes that if Nigeria can concentrate on developing and providing skills, there would be few concerns about the migration. After all, the departing are paving the way for the underemployed and jobless to fill the vacancies created by their departure.
It’s true that this is the case, but should companies really be putting their credibility at risk by relying on fresh faces who haven’t been well screened or prepared to compete on a global scale?
Now we’ll discuss the alternative exit strategy. What if we had a mechanism that was in charge of linking the top 5 percent of Nigerian talent with the best technology companies in Nigeria and beyond? A structure set up to satisfy the urgent need for high-caliber technical expertise by attracting and cultivating talented individuals who are also capable of taking the reins in their own right. Every organization that wants to grow requires access to a system with well-established procedures for educating and vetting the most promising IT applicants. An infrastructure that maintains equilibrium in the IT sector by replenishing the outstanding pool of talent lost when tech professionals leave the nation.
If this is carried out, then there is nothing to be concerned about, since there will be an abundance of well qualified individuals from whom to choose their successors.
One may argue that this is not an original idea. As a matter of fact, it may be the plan of many.Who bells the cat decides. Unless everything changes, businesses will continue to flounder whenever a talented “techbro” decides to japa.
Investment in Nigeria’s startup scene will continue, but until this mystery is answered, the industry will be unable to attract the talent it needs to thrive. If the departure of even one employee from a digital firm every so often causes chaos, it’s hard to see how Nigeria could ever catch up to global trends in technology.
As we do so, it’s important to keep in mind that tomorrow’s top talent need more than just technical know-how. They need to be competent in the necessary technological areas, to be sure, but what makes them really valuable to an organization is their ability to inspire others and drive progress. As we enter a new era of talent acquisition, maybe we will begin to place more emphasis on character than just technical competence. This is the kind of expertise that makes up an organization’s top five percent.
Maybe if we can figure this out, we can end Nigeria’s IT talent shortage and bring the country up to speed with the rest of the world.
