A Nigerian lecturer in the United Kingdom and founder of a social enterprise, Proud To Be Me, Lola Owolabi, speaks with BABATUNDE TITILOLA and BIODUN BUSARI on how Nigerians struggle abroad and what the Nigerian government can do to reduce the japa syndrome
How did you become a United Kingdom resident?
I was actually born in the United Kingdom but I returned to Nigeria when I was a teenager. I did my A Levels at the Federal Government College, Ilorin, Kwara State. I attended the University of Ibadan and I did the National Youth Service Corps programme in Bida, Niger State. I later moved to Lagos State where I worked for a bit with my husband before we relocated to the UK thereafter. But my first 15 years were spent in the UK.
What challenges did you face when you first arrived in the UK?
I think the number one challenge that you will face as a returnee even if you were born here is obviously settling down, getting a job, and getting suitable accommodation. Everybody is expected to go through these but I decided in my mind that I did not want to do any kind of caregiving work. In fact, it was not even caregiving work in those days, it was cleaning. So, I said I was not going to do that. The first job I wanted was a banking job and I got it.
How did you overcome those challenges?
I overcame these challenges by praying with the scriptures. I have a favourite scripture that says we should come boldly to the throne of grace where we will find help in the time of need. Till today, I hold on to that word. I am a child of God and I knew that God had a great plan for me. I went to a bank one day and after meeting a lady who attended to me, I told God I wanted that kind of job and God did it.
What specific initiatives does Proud To Be Me offer?
With Proud To Be Me, we really work with empowering women, young girls and all youths. We thrive on these four pillars: entrepreneurship, leadership, employability, and creativity. If you think about it, youths would be interested in one or all of them. What we do as an organisation is to empower young people in those four pillars that I have mentioned. We want to empower them to fulfil their purpose and destiny.
Why did you decide to have an office in Nigeria?
I wanted to have an office in Nigeria because Nigeria is one of the most creative spaces on planet Earth. I often say that when God was dishing out creativity to the world, he probably stopped in other countries for an hour but stopped in Nigeria for 24 hours. We are wonderfully resilient creatives and clever people. I am actually honoured to have an office in Nigeria doing the work that God has called me to do to support women and young people. We want them to use their God-given talents to make a difference in their own lives and the people in their communities. That is why we are called Proud To Be Me. We need to encourage youths to be proud of who they are and to be proud of their gifts and talents. Nobody is born empty. Everybody has one gift or the other. Our responsibility is to pull out the gifts of the youth in the great nation called Nigeria.
How do you stay connected to your Nigerian roots while living abroad?
That has not been an issue for me. I attend a very Nigeria-eccentric church and I have lots of Nigerian friends.
Comparing your human capital development projects in the UK and Nigeria, what are the noticeable differences in terms of finance, favourable terrain, among others?
There is difficulty in raising funds in both countries. We are living in a global economic crisis. In the UK, we call it the cost of living. In Nigeria, there is austerity. People are not giving to charity. There is more competition to get funding. What this means for our organisation is that we have to find ways to be more creative, flexible, and adaptive in our attitudes. But I also think that in the UK, people are slightly more charitable. In Nigeria, it is more about people wanting to survive. So, they have to look after themselves first before they dig deep into their pockets to contribute to any charitable project. My hope for the Nigerian people is that they will be in better positions to become more charitable. This is not just about money. It is about volunteering and being kind to humanity as it were. The honest truth is that it is tough in both countries right now.
How do you combine managing a social enterprise with lecturing?
In managing my social enterprise and lecturing, I have discovered that you bring the whole breadth of your experience to every role that you play. So, in my role as a lecturer, I bring in a lot of what I have learnt in the social enterprise and the non-profit space. So, as I teach leadership and entrepreneurship, I can bring my authentic self and experiences to the lecturing space. This helps my students to hear from the horse’s mouth.
How has what you teach in the university helped you apply your profession outside academia?
At the university, I have three roles. I am the resident coach. I also lecture the top-up degree on growth mindset, coaching skills, and reflective practice. There are also entrepreneurship and leadership interventions I do. All of these things are interlocked and that allows me to bring what I have in one aspect to other aspects. The key to everything I do is all about empowering people.
Being a Nigerian, what are you most proud of whenever you’re outside the country?
I am proud of the creativity of Nigerians and their intelligence. We have quite a number of them in my university. I am always impressed with their creativity at different levels of their contributions to the school and their communities. Nigerians are amazing and super talented everywhere in the world.
What is your perspective on Nigeria and its challenges as a country?
The greatest challenge in Nigeria, even for me as a business owner, is infrastructure. For instance, the lack of good, stable electricity and reliable internet connection. A Nigerian can work from any part of the country but when there is no reliable power supply, we waste a lot of manhours because infrastructure is not in place to make our jobs more convenient. Another challenge is that a lot of our youths are not trying to look for work.
What is your position on the level of japa in Nigeria?
The truth is that Nigerians are suffering abroad, UK inclusive. I have seen it on television programmes and even witnessed it. A lot of them have to rely on food banks where they have to go and queue to have their meals because they cannot afford daily sustenance.
In your experience, what are the most pressing issues facing young Nigerians today?
I think the most pressing issue for Nigerian youths today is lack of support and this has caused a lot of them to be misled and influenced the wrong way. There is a false narrative influencing their mindset. You see our youths looking at some people who appear to be living a great life but there is no idea what they do in their closet. People can put their best selves out there, but you do not know what they do behind the scenes. So, I believe a lot of our youths are putting themselves under unnecessary pressure and I think that it is one of the duties of our society to support our youths and teach them not to run before they can walk.
There’s an increasing movement of young experts and professionals from Nigeria to other countries. As a community development professional, what can be done to reduce brain drain in the country?
I strongly believe government and private business collaborations can effectively reduce the brain drain in Nigeria. We just need to look at the quality of our education, encourage vocational skills, and inspire them to have multiple streams of income. There are a lot of jobs they can learn and do remotely and conveniently. We should also encourage soft skills training so that when they do get jobs, they know how to handle the job and the people they work with.
How should the Nigerian government improve the lives of its youths?
I believe the government needs to do a lot more for the youth; they are the future. I believe the government needs to support them with initiatives and the required finances. Back in the day, the United Kingdom used to have an allowance for college students. It was 30 pounds a week and it helped every college student with transport and other basic academic needs. If the Nigerian government cannot do that, they should establish free entrepreneurship training systems for young folks. Not everybody is cut out for higher institution learning. Vocational schools are powerful tools to shape the future of our youths. When the current generation is gone, it is the youth that will take up the mantle of leading the country. So, what is the government doing to equip them for the future? Of course, besides the government, parents and schools also have roles to play. In the UK, they are looking more into the system of apprenticeship because not everybody is cut out for university. There should be investment across academic and non-academic sectors that will help young ones decide where they are best suited. This can also enable them to have multiple streams of income.
