Migration-Development Nexus: Remittances, Brain Drain, and Nigeria’s Policy Responses

This study analyses the migration-development nexus in the Nigerian context, examining the complex relationship between emigration, remittance flows, brain drain, and Nigeria's international policy responses to managed migration. Nigeria is simultaneously one of the world's largest remittance recipients and one of the most significant sources of skilled professional emigration, creating a structural tension between the economic benefits of migration and the developmental costs of talent loss. Drawing on the new economics of labour migration and development theory, this research assesses the scale and sectoral impact of remittances in key receiving zones, the magnitude of brain drain across health, education, and engineering professions, and the bilateral and multilateral policy frameworks Nigeria has adopted to manage these dynamics from 2019 to 2024. The study employs a mixed-methods design, combining quantitative analysis of remittance and migration data from the World Bank, Central Bank of Nigeria, and National Population Commission with qualitative interviews with healthcare professionals who have emigrated and returned. The South West and South East zones are overrepresented in the study sample given their disproportionate share of skilled emigrants. Findings are expected to show that while remittances provide significant household welfare benefits, cumulative brain drain is producing systemic service delivery gaps in health and education that current policy responses inadequately address. Keywords: migration, remittances, brain drain, Nigeria, development policy.