The Founder of Blacks Ancestral Native Communities (BANC) Foundation, Dr. Chibuzo Onyema, has urged the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs (FMFA) and other relevant government agencies to partner with employers, development partners, and international organizations to address irregular migration. Onyema, convener of the Anti-Irregular Migration Summit, made the call while introducing the Africa Global Employability and Mobility Solutions (AfriGEMS) initiative in Abuja. AfriGEMS aims to support efforts by African and European institutions to mitigate irregular migration by addressing economic realities that compel young people to seek opportunities outside their countries.
Onyema stated that skills acquisition alone would not stop young people from embarking on irregular migration unless the skills could be converted into decent jobs, sustainable livelihoods, and income-generating opportunities. He argued that interventions against irregular migration should go beyond discouraging young people from leaving their countries and instead address the economic conditions that influence their decisions. According to Onyema, AfriGEMS is designed to support efforts to mitigate irregular migration by addressing some of the economic realities that compel young people to seek opportunities outside their countries.
The AfriGEMS initiative equips young Africans with globally relevant industrial, technical, vocational, digital, and green skills through practical training and apprenticeships linked to certification, employment, and entrepreneurship. Onyema stressed that the model was not built around certificates alone but around creating a practical route through which participants could develop competencies that translate into employment, enterprise creation, and productive livelihoods. Participants would be prepared to acquire demonstrable competencies linked to apprenticeships, local employment, self-employment, enterprise creation, and other income-generating opportunities.
Onyema identified the intended progression of AfriGEMS as from skills acquisition to occupational competence, apprenticeship or enterprise, employment and sustainable livelihood, and ultimately regular mobility opportunities for those who chose to migrate. He said this approach was necessary because migration itself was not necessarily the problem, but the major concern was migration undertaken through unsafe and irregular channels that could expose young people to trafficking, exploitation, fraudulent recruitment, and other abuses.
The BANC founder called for partnership involving the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, relevant government agencies, including the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) and National Directorate of Employment (NDE), universities and polytechnics, employers, and licensed private employment agencies. He also identified international organizations and development partners, including the International Labour Organisation (ILO), International Organisation for Migration (IOM), German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ), and International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), as potential partners.
Onyema emphasized that training programs must respond to verified labor-market demand, employers must provide apprenticeships and jobs, and governments and destination countries must establish bilateral labor pathways. He added that development partners and international organizations could support standards, certification, and safeguards required to protect young people throughout the recruitment, employment, and migration process. Employers should be actively involved in the process by providing apprenticeships and job opportunities, while training institutions should align their programs with the skills required in the labor market.
The AfriGEMS initiative ultimately seeks to connect skills, employment, livelihoods, and safe mobility, arguing that providing skills without creating pathways to decent work could leave young people facing the same economic pressures that initially encouraged them to migrate. Onyema maintained that a sustainable response to irregular migration must consequently combine employability, decent work, productive livelihoods, and safe, orderly, and regular labor mobility, rather than relying solely on campaigns discouraging young people from migrating.
Key points
- The BANC Foundation is seeking partnerships to support the Africa Global Employability and Mobility Solutions (AfriGEMS) initiative.
- AfriGEMS aims to equip young Africans with globally relevant skills and provide pathways to decent work and regular migration opportunities.
- The initiative seeks to address the economic realities that compel young people to seek opportunities outside their countries.
