COVID-19: Please don’t ‘abandon your country of origin’, Buhari appeals to Nigerians abroad

President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday urged Nigerians in the diaspora to actively participate in the country’s post-COVID-19 economic recovery efforts.

A statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, in Abuja on Saturday said President Buhari made the call in a video message to commemorate this year’s Diaspora Day, held on July 25 of every year.

He appealed to Nigerians, whose home remittances exceeded $25 billion annually in three years, not to abandon the country in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The president said:

“Over the past three years, Nigerians in the Diaspora have brought in over $25 billion annually as home remittances to the Nigerian economy through official and non-formal channels.

”This is about 6.0 percent of our annual GDP and upwards of 80 percent of our annual budget.

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“This has impacted on livelihoods of Nigerians in terms of education, health, housing and estate development, industry, trade and investments, agriculture and technology/skills transfer.

“In terms of Diaspora home remittances, Nigeria is rated as number one in sub-Saharan Africa and this is still growing especially with the advocacy and mobilization programmes of the newly established Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM).

“Nigerians in Diaspora are also known to be engaged in skill transfer in ICT and industry. They are also active in our universities as lecturers, and in carrying out medical missions.

“It is, therefore, my sincere hope that even with the depressed economy under stress in the year 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Nigerians in the Diaspora will rise up to the occasion of not abandoning their country of origin, but be active in our Post-COVID-19 economic recovery efforts.”

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