Durrant Pate/Contributor

It appears that Jamaica is not the only CARICOM state that will be getting Nigerian professionals to shore up their health and education sectors, which are suffering from a migration of professionals to Western countries offering more lucrative salaries.

The West African country has just signed a Technical Manpower Assistance (TMA) Agreement in which Nigerian professionals will serve as volunteers for two years in a number of CARICOM states, including Jamaica and St Lucia. Under the agreement, Nigeria will cover their allowances and logistics, while the host CARICOM states will provide accommodation and local support.

In a statement released on Wednesday by Nigeria’s Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga said the initiative is part of broader efforts to deepen South-South cooperation and reconnect with the African diaspora in the Caribbean.

The agreement was formalised in Castries, St Lucia, with Director-General of the Nigerian Technical Aid Corps (TAC) Yusuf Buba Yakub signing on behalf of his country. Acting Permanent Secretary at St Lucia’s Ministry of External Affairs, International Trade, Civil Aviation and Diaspora Affairs, Janelle Modeste-Stephen signed on behalf of the Caribbean nation.

Jamaica set to get 400 professionals 

“Jamaica has formally requested 400 experts and is willing to pay. Instead of importing labour from Asia, they want Nigerian professionals. We are exporting Nigeria’s human capital with dignity, creating opportunities for our people, and reinforcing Nigeria’s leadership across the Global South,” Yakub said. “One of our volunteers in Jamaica popularised Adire (Yoruba fabric design), which has become so popular that Jamaicans now produce it locally, calling it ‘Jadire’. They even export it to the United States.”

Describing the agreement as “a great achievement”, Yakub said it reflects President Bola Tinubu’s directive to deploy technical aid to the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). 

“This is an outstanding achievement, just days after Mr President’s directive to deploy technical aid to Saint Lucia and the wider OECS,” Yakub was quoted as saying.

Nigeria’s 4D foreign policy

The deployment aligns with President Tinubu’s recently unveiled 4D foreign policy—Democracy, Development, Diaspora, and Demography, which seeks to strengthen Nigeria’s global influence through strategic partnerships. Since the inception of the current administration in May 2023, Yakub revealed that over 300 professionals have been deployed to countries across Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific.

“Since my appointment in August, we’ve deployed volunteers to Liberia, Sierra Leone, Jamaica, and other African nations. This programme was nearly dormant, but Mr President revived it with his strong foreign policy vision,” Yakub said, disclosing that additional deployments are ongoing with four nurses scheduled to depart for Jamaica and six medical doctors set to leave for Grenada on July 9. 

Discussions are also underway with Belize, the Dominican Republic, and the Director-General of the OECS to create a regional framework for further technical cooperation with the Nigerian envoy, saying the TAC initiative has also shown potential beyond development assistance.

Tinubu on state visit to St Lucia 

President Tinubu has been on a state visit to St Lucia since Saturday as part of a two-nation tour of the Caribbean and South America. On Monday, he addressed a special joint sitting of the Saint Lucian Senate and House of Assembly, where he announced a new scholarship scheme for OECS students to study in Nigerian universities from the next academic year.

He also proposed visa waivers for holders of diplomatic and official passports. Later that day, Tinubu was honoured with the title of Knight Commander of the Order of St. Lucia (K.C.S.L.), in recognition of his efforts to strengthen ties between Africa and the Caribbean.