Before You JAPA, Answer These 3 Questions

JAPA is a word that has been trending recently among Nigerian youths since the 2020s, it is probably because of the alarming rate at which young people are fleeing the country planning never to come back, or only to come back when they have become successful out there.

So before we begin, what really is “JAPA”?

JAPA is a loosely used Nigerian Pidgin English term derived from the Yoruba word ‘Jakpa’ which simply means “to run swiftly out of a dangerous situation”. It’s often used in a context that basically means ‘moving abroad’ or ‘relocating out of Nigeria’. Due to the worsening security atmosphere and looming economic disaster in the country today. A lot of citizens are planning their exit from the country. Before you as a young person join the JAPA bandwagon today, I am going to share some tips with you on what you need to know as you plan to JAPA from the country.

I’m concerned about this worrisome trend in the nation today because I consider it my responsibility to give guidance and direction to people, so whatever decision they want to take should be based on accurate information. So that our young people will not become victims of their ignorance, because information reforms while ignorance deforms.

Unfortunately, before I was moved to write this article a lot of young people I knew had been led astray. I’ve heard stories of people who begged their friends and family members here in Nigeria to send monies to them abroad so they could buy their return tickets back home, because they were ill-informed about their destination and couldn’t cope with the challenges abroad. We’ve had to pray for brethren who fell into trouble abroad due to their ignorance, for example, you don’t get offended when youngsters don’t greet you.

Now, there are certain vital considerations you need to put in place before you JAPA, and they are very important. So let’s look at them one after the other;

1. WHY DO YOU WANT TO TRAVEL OUT?

What’s your reason for JAPAing?

I know there are several reasons why a young person might want to travel out. Probably, for academics, job opportunities, missionary activities, aspirational goals, or simply in search of a better life, etc. You must have a personal reason for wanting to travel abroad.

And this article is specifically aimed at those travelling for economic reasons i.e. Economic Migration. This set of people thinks that they have a better economic possibility when they JAPA, but what many of them do not realize is that where they are going to, there are people who were born there that are still poor. There are also those who travelled there thinking they would have made it big, but they are struggling and wish to return back to home. I do not wish to be a bearer of bad news, but I want you to be aware of this point of consideration.

You see poverty is a mindset, these economic migrants are told that the minimum salary is $2,000 of course that’s not a lie. So in their mind, they are like 2,000 multiplied by 700 (current dollars to naira exchange) equals 1.4 million Naira. But then, they forget that you will spend in the currency you earn. Out of that $2,000, their rent might be $850 per month (multiplied by 700 equals #595,000). These economic migrants are shocked at how much they get to spend on basic things and discover rather too late that they might not have as much disposable income as they imagined to have.

I will like to ask this again, hope your reason for JAPA is strong enough.

 2. WHERE DO YOU WANT TO TRAVEL TO?

So you want to JAPA, where do you want to go to?

Where exactly do you want to go?

We’ve heard lots of stories from the Nigerian Diaspora Commission of all kinds of interventions by the Nigerian government using various airlines and through several government parastatals, which had to bring lots of Nigerians back home from different places around the world, citizens who thought they were going out of the country to get greener pastures but ended up in the wrong hands of perpetrators of modern slavery, prostitution and organs trafficking.

Young ones, listen and listen very well. Not every open door is a breakthrough, even a prison door has to be opened for you to enter it. I’ve heard of stories of people in Libya and I’m also aware that you know the Libyan story. A lot of people will gather money and even sell their belongings to travel to Libya via the Sahara desert and from there cross the Mediterranean sea to enter Europe, but then we end up hearing sad stories of how they ended up as sex slaves and slave workers in Libya. I’m not here to stir up your emotions but to enlighten you on the devastating effects that ignorance of your JAPA destination could have on your life.

There are lots of stories of people applying for non-existent jobs in Dubai and Italy, only to get there and they are forced to swear an oath of secrecy and allegiance to certain deities and then they are forced into prostitution, drug peddling, and money laundering.

Dr. Olumide Emmanuel once shared the story of going to Italy and ministering in a church there and when he made an altar call, almost everyone in the congregation including the choristers came forward. While interviewing them, he discovered that they all claimed that while in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria they were informed about job openings in Italy, only for their visas to be processed and brought to Italy. They all had rude awakenings concerning their supposed job offers, as they were all forced to swear an oath of secrecy and allegiance, before they were briefed that they were to work as commercial sex workers. He felt really heartbroken after the interview. And that was the last time, he went to Italy.

I’ve heard of people talking about schooling in Northern Cyprus, and Northern Cyprus is not officially recognized as a country. Many parents in a bid to ensure their children study abroad, have lost them sending them to places like Northern Cyprus.

As you want to JAPA, hope you have relevant knowledge about the weather and clothing style of your JAPA destination. There’s another story told by Dr. Olumide Emmanuel about a guy that JAPAed to Ukraine to study but died the same day. It was such a heartbreaking story for his parents since he was their only son. So Dr. Olumide Emmanuel had to call the young man’s schoolmate to find out what led to the young man’s death. He was told that it was cold that killed the young man, that most of the heaters in the hostels were bad, and that the young man arrived in Ukraine without the needed heavy clothing to match Ukraine’s cold weather. He was supposed to buy a smaller heater to keep him warm throughout the night since the ones installed in the hostel were bad. But he procrastinated, saying he was going to buy the heater the following day. So he slept that night without any functioning heater to keep him warm, but couldn’t wake up the following day because he was frozen like iced-fish before morning. That’s how his ignorance led to his death.

Make sure you do your research about the country you want to JAPA to. Be acquainted with the laws of such a country, weather, culture, language, customs, and dressing style. Prostitution is legal in some countries, hope you can handle it.

I will like to say this again, hope you know where you are going.

 3. HOW DO YOU WANT TO TRAVEL?

Which mode of transportation will you use to JAPA, by air, land or sea?

It’s erroneous to enter a country with a visitor’s visa and harbor an intention to reside permanently. Majority of young Nigerians that JAPAed went on visiting visas.

You need to be aware that there are different classes of visas, with specific durations attached to them. Some of these young Nigerians that went with visiting visas end up entering arrangee marriages so they won’t be deported back to Nigeria. Let me tell you this for free, a visiting visa is totally different from an immigrant visa. Dear young ones, never try to enter a country illegally, the story of those who tried it didn’t go down well.

Never plan to enter a country illegally, and try to change status while in it, the plan might backfire.

Final Take Home

In summary, think deeply about why you really want to travel abroad, have you tried hard enough to get the opportunities you seek abroad? Are there opportunities only available in Nigeria that you are not seeing right now? Then secondly, get really informed about your JAPA destination. Ask questions, search google, post questions on forums like Nairaland, open your mind to know what you want to hear and what you don’t want to hear, and make well-informed decisions. The information you get may not necessarily stop you from going abroad but may help you to consider a different country instead. And Finally, Really really consider “HOW” you want to travel. Avoid roads or ships, those routes are mostly illegal. Many innocent ones have met that doom trying to JAPA through illegal channels.

The final decision is yours to make, if it turns out well, you’d be the one to testify of the goodness, but never act upon ignorance because the consequence may cost you all your money life savings, making you start life afresh or even cost you your life. I hope with these few points of consideration, I’ve spelt out what you need to think very well about before you JAPA, so you won’t JAPA out and beg to be JAPAed back deJAPAed.