EU migrant crisis and the ‘Nigerian angle’

AFOLABI GAMBARI
Observers have been unanimous that the solution to the migrant crisis in Europe cannot be delayed further in view of its escalation in recent months, particularly as it concerns the vulnerable among the African migrants who include children, pregnant women and sundry others.
Yet, the Brussels summit of EU heads of government staged on June 28 and 29 was nearly averted as it took a marathon session for the EU leaders to arrive at a deal on how the African migrants would be shared among member countries. Although the deal did not give details on the “sharing formula”, it was nonetheless agreed that the summit would address the finer details which include carefully separating genuine asylum seekers from regular migrants.
Libya has proved for fleeing Nigerians the only major gateway from Africa to Europe, even as economic instability and general deprivation have not helped to check the trend.
Interestingly, Europe has kept exceptionally being on the edge over the migrant crisis. It was even more so intense towards end of 2017. On November 15, the EU ambassadors agreed on a mandate for negotiations on a regulation establishing an EU resettlement framework for the admission of asylum seekers. By December 14-15, the European Council held a debate on the internal and external dimensions of the EU migration policy, assessing what had and what had not work in the previous two years with a view to strengthening the policy.
African leaders have responded to the migrant crisis which they have been variously described as “embarrassing” at different fora. But the reactions have been self-serving and unwholesome as they have been at best feeble and ineffective, if not altogether way off the mark. Little wonder the problem has persisted. It would indeed appear as though the African leaders have ceded the right to address the migrant crisis to their European counterparts.
Safe for Germany’s “soft stance” on African migrants, Italy, whose land is the ultimate destination for most Europe-bound African migrants, has appeared not interested in resettling the unsettled Africans, as it were, parroting ‘Italian ideology’ under recently appointed Interior Minister Matteo Salvini who has already sparked a diplomatic row with Tunisia whom he accused of “exporting convicts” posing as asylum seekers.
Ironically, Italy’s somewhat harsh stance on African migrants is being exacerbated by the Nigerian-born first Italian black Senator, Toni Iwobi, who is a member of the country’s far-right anti-immigrant League Party. Iwobi, who was elected on March 9 this year, famously declared hours after his election: “Immigration shouldn’t cost thousands of lives at sea and shouldn’t cost a cent to the host country.” Not a few have since viewed Iwobi, who himself travelled from Nigeria to Italy in 1976 before joining the League Party in 1993, with suspicion and indignation, though he hasn’t yet appeared to be less committed to his cause.
With Nigeria having contributed the largest number of African migrants into Europe at 387,739 (according to December 2017 estimates), the European Union ought to focus on Nigeria, especially with the West African nation’s key position in Africa, in the areas that would help the government improve the lot of its citizens. One such area is to help strengthen Nigeria’s institutions, particularly the election and electioneering which would ultimately ensure that the right persons are put in key posts that can guarantee good governance, which Nigeria has lacked in recent years, across board.
The EU can also help engineer massive investment in Nigeria, with a view to creating equally massive employment especially for the youth which would in turn create massive opportunities for prosperity and ultimately curb the youth’s migration to Europe. As much as this seems an arduous task for the EU, however, it is also a sure way it could ensure peace for itself and Africa in general and Nigeria in particular as partners in global development.
It remains to be seen, however, how the EU can help Nigeria’s development more than Nigeria can help its own development, using its own resources.
 
Afolabi Gambari
Lagos, Nigeria
Tel: +2348064651922, +2348116706849
Journalist, Environmentalist, Social Commentator.