Nigerian asylum seekers: “A long walk to freedom” or “The pursuit of happiness”

The pattern, trends and conditions of Nigerians migrating irregularly yearly to seek asylum around the world has been on the increase and is worrisome. It was about 48 persons per 100,000 of the Nigerian population in 2017 (UNHCR, 2018b). On the journey to Europe through North Africa, many die or are caught up in significant human rights abuse situations. In North America where the journey is arguably less dangerous, irregular migration from Nigeria has found its way into political discourses. This capstone applies panel regression techniques to pooled macro-level data to examine the origin and destination country factors driving the irregular migration of Nigerians. It considers the policy problem that: “There are too many Nigerians migrating irregularly to seek asylum in several countries”. Primarily, it recommends that the government employ coordinated and targeted information campaigns to counter incorrect narratives on migration and highlight the legal processes for migrating.