ABSTRACT

Labour migration involves the transfer and flight of technical know-how and skills from one nation to another, to secure a better job and establish a new residence. It has consequences for the individual, the country of origin and the country of destination. Over the last decades, an increasing number of developed countries have put in place different mechanisms to encourage the immigration of only the most talented, skilled individuals from developing countries. A good example is the international visa lottery scheme. This scheme is put in place perhaps because developing countries cannot fully exploit the abilities and skills of human capital, as they do not have enough jobs to offer. Thus, Nigeria and other developing countries have become a human capitalgenerating machines for the developed world. It is an indisputable truism that labour migration has adverse effects ranging from social, cultural, and political to economic upon the emigrant’s country. The thrust of this paper, therefore, is to examine the factors responsible for the flood of Nigerian migrants witnessed during the past couple of years. The dynamic consequences of labour migration and brain drain syndrome on human capital formation in Nigeria will be considered. Empirical studies have established the global net benefits of labour migration, but their findings are inconclusive about the impact migration has on the emigrant's country. Hence, the need for human capital formation in an emerging economy will also be addressed. Finally, the paper will offer policy recommendations to ensure immigrants’ economic contribution to developing human capital.