Rising Emigration: Care Crisis Looms for Nigeria’s Ageing Population

* Experts call for trained caregivers, home-based services, stronger geriatric support

•Families urged to build local care networks for ageing parents

Sunday Ehigiator

As increasing numbers of young and economically active Nigerians leave the country in search of greener pastures abroad, a new challenge is emerging for those they leave behind as families grapple with how to care for their ageing parents.

With children increasingly scattered across the United Kingdom, the United States, Europe, Canada and other destinations, Nigeria’s traditional family-based system of caring for older people is coming under growing pressure, raising concerns about who will provide the companionship, medical support, daily assistance and emergency care that ageing parents may need.

Nigeria’s National Senior Citizens Centre defines older persons as those aged 60 years and above and has a statutory mandate covering their health, social care, income, security and dignity.

The Centre has also recognised the need for caregiver training and standards for geriatric social care.

Yet Nigeria’s traditional reliance on family members for elder care is coming under strain from migration, urbanisation, changing family structures and economic realities.

For 68-year-old Mrs. Amina Yusuf, the departure of her children has brought a new reality to old age.

Two of her three children live in the United Kingdom, while the third works in another Nigerian state. Her children send money for her upkeep, but she says financial support cannot replace physical presence.

“When I am sick, I call my children first. They will send money and ask me to go to the hospital, but somebody still has to take me there,” she said.

According to her, a neighbour sometimes accompanies her to the hospital, while a church member helps with errands.

“I don’t want to disturb people. Sometimes I wait until somebody is going to the market before I ask them to help me buy something,” she said.

Her greatest concern, she said, is what happens during an emergency. “If something happens to me at night, who will know? My children are abroad. They can call, but they cannot enter this house.”

Her children maintain regular contact through video calls, she said, but the conversations do not completely remove the feeling of loneliness.

“I am happy they are doing well. I don’t want them to come back and suffer because of me. But sometimes you just want your child to sit beside you.”

A similar experience is described by 72-year-old Chalse Ehizogie, a retired soldier, whose two daughters live in Canada and son is based in the United States.

Ehizogie, who has arthritis and occasionally requires assistance moving around, said his children pay his medical bills and employ a part-time domestic helper.

“The money helps, but there are things money cannot do immediately. If I need to go to church, attend a family ceremony or see the doctor, I need somebody physically here. When my children were around, one of them would simply say, ‘Daddy, let’s go.’ Now, we have to plan everything. We talk almost every day. But a phone cannot hold your hand when you are feeling weak.”

The scale of Nigerian migration has changed considerably over the past three decades.

United Nations data show that the number of Nigerians living outside the country reached an estimated 2.094 million in 2024. The United States accounted for about 565,000, the United Kingdom 324,000, Niger 200,000 and Cameroon 188,000.

World Bank data based on UN estimates also show that Nigeria’s international migrant stock rose from about 457,000 in 1990 to 1.2 million in 2015, although migrant-stock estimates measure people living outside their country of origin and should not be confused with annual migration flows.

The growth of migration has coincided with a growing population of older Nigerians.

Another recent review of elder caregiving in Nigeria by the United States’ National Library of Medicine found that migration and urbanisation are reshaping traditional family-care arrangements. It noted that remittances can help pay for care, but migrant children’s absence can also reduce daily interaction and hands-on assistance.

The problem, according to a Geriatric-care specialist, Dr. Tunde Adebayo, is that families often equate financial provision with caregiving.

“Money is an important part of care, but elder care is multidimensional. An older person may need somebody to notice that they are becoming confused, that they have stopped eating properly, that they are taking the wrong medication or that they have fallen. These are things that may not be captured in a bank transfer,” he added.

Adebayo said families with migrant children should develop a formal care plan rather than wait for emergencies.

“That plan should identify a trusted person who lives close to the older person, their doctor, emergency contacts, medication schedule and who has authority to make decisions when the children cannot physically be present.”

He said communities would also need to play a greater role. “We cannot continue to assume that every family will always have a child living in the same city. Nigeria needs properly trained caregivers, home-based care, community support and stronger geriatric services.”

The physical absence of children can also have an emotional cost. A 2025 study examining ageing parents left behind by migration in Nigeria, published on Zenodo, reported cases involving anxiety, depression and loneliness.

Stakeholders at a recent Lagos symposium organised by the Gabi Williams Alzheimer’s Foundation had pointed out that migration could contribute to neglect, loneliness and reduced quality of life among older people living with dementia, even where relatives continue to provide financial support from abroad.

In her contribution, Counselling Psychologist, Dr. Ngozi Balogun, who spoke with THISDAY, said the emotional consequences could be particularly difficult for parents whose children were once their primary source of companionship.

“Some parents deliberately hide their loneliness because they don’t want their children to feel guilty about leaving. They tell the children, ‘Don’t worry about me, I am fine.’ But psychologically, that may not always be true.”

She said migrant children could maintain stronger bonds by creating structured routines rather than relying only on occasional calls.

“Regular video calls, involvement in medical decisions, planned visits and celebrating important occasions together can help. But families should also build a local support network around the older person.”

She cautioned against making migration itself the villain.

“We should not tell young Nigerians that they must abandon opportunities abroad because their parents are ageing. The issue is how families and society can redesign caregiving for a more mobile population,” she added.

Nigeria has geriatric services (care for older people) in some teaching hospitals and specialist facilities, but access remains an important consideration.

Facilities and programmes providing geriatric care exist in parts of the country, including specialist services in Lagos and geriatric units associated with some tertiary hospitals.

The broader challenge is developing a system that extends beyond treating illness in hospitals to include long-term care, home care, rehabilitation, dementia support and trained caregivers.

For Mrs. Yusuf, the answer is not for her children to abandon their lives abroad. “I want my children to succeed,” she said. “I only want to know that if I need help, somebody will come.”

For Ehizogie, the solution is similarly simple, “Don’t wait until your father or mother is in an emergency before you start looking for who will help them.”