The West Is Teeming with Africans Doing Odd Jobs Because Our Leaders Can’t Provide Vision or Hope

The narratives of illegal immigration in both Europe and North America often focus on the problems faced by receiving countries or the trials of those forced to live covert lives in foreign lands. The exodus of citizens from underdeveloped states, however, imposes the most harm on the countries that are abandoned. Author Abdul-Raheem describes the irony of sitting on a plane next to a man who was expelled from Nigeria and accepted as a British citizen, while on the same flight is a young Nigerian man forced to return to his country from England as an illegal. The acceptance of unskilled jobs abroad, and consequent dependence in poor countries on remittances, has undermined the efforts of African nations to further independent development. Instead of addressing the symptoms of illegal immigration, the worldwide community must seek to rectify the root causes that make such desperate attempts seem like the only option. – YaleGlobal