By Olusegun Olanrewaju, Seyi Odewale, Francis Ajuonuma (Lagos), Deborah Onyofufeke (Abuja)
‘Japa’, in Sanskrit, refers to the meditative repetition of a mantra or a divine name. It is a practice found in Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism, and Buddhism, with parallels in other religions.

But the Nigerian interpretation of the phenomenon is found in the Yoruba meaning which simply translates to “to run away”.

That cannot be truer than the situation presented in the Nigerian banking sector, which has been hit by an exodus of talent, especially in the field of technology.

Banking chiefs are worried stiff about the turn of events which is creating instability in corporate management and industrial standing.

They are unsettled that no sooner had they recruited highly demanded staff in technology-related fields than the young corporate ‘Turks’ grab their luggage for the next flight to pick jobs or study abroad.

One of the industry chiefs summarised their frustration in an interview with a national daily last week.

He said, “So many of our very experienced talents, especially in the area of software engineering, are either leaving the industry or leaving the country.

Abubakar Suleiman, the chief executive officer of Sterling Bank, told reporters at the end of a meeting of bank chiefs, referred to the problem as “a great resignation”.

The meeting had been called, in conjunction with the nation’s apex bank and financial regulatory agency, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), to address the challenges facing traditional lenders in Africa’s largest economy, which is facing stiff competition for talent from technology start-ups, which has been attracting increased funding from international investors and offering better working conditions, both domestically and internationally.

It is now feared that Africa-focused start-ups, which reportedly raised a record $5 billion last year, could be losing out to the ‘Japa’ in the banking sector, with those specialising in digital and mobile payments, as well as lending soaking up most of the funding.

*Reasons for the ‘great resignations
Two principal indices have been identified as the reason for the mass exodus in the banking industry, especially among much-desired technical staff.

These, include, but are not limited to, economic contractions in the past five years which have forced some Nigerians with globally marketable skills to leave the country.

The preferred destination of those who love to resign their appointments before ‘running away’ include high-profile countries like the United States (US), Canada, and the United Kingdom (UK).

Meanwhile, confronted with the fundamental nature of the problem, the umbrella professional body for lenders in the country, the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CBN), has vowed to “drive the process of training more skills in the area where we see deficits.”

Suleiman disclosed to the reporters that the bank executives discussed plans to fund training for new tech-focused staffers to replace those who have left because of the ‘great resignation’.

At the same briefing, the Managing Director of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB), Miriam Olusanya, also revealed that the bank chief executives also agreed to help the apex bank in the country to increase the adoption of the digital currency, the eNaira.

According to reports, the digital currency app has now recorded more than 756,000 downloads since its launch in October.

 

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Olusanya added that the consumer wallet has 165,000 downloads and the merchant wallet 2,800.

Industry stakeholders believe that the mass resignation, especially of software engineers, for juicy jobs abroad, disrupts digitisation moves in banks.

The drove in commercial banks for staff to seek greener pastures abroad, it has been observed, is currently threatening digitisation in the banking sector.

This becomes more worrisome given the impact of the cashless banking initiative of the authorities.

Under the policy, every banking transaction is expected to be digitised.

However, ‘Japa’ is obstructing the operation of electronic and mobile banking systems across banks.

*The ramification
Many Nigerians have relocated abroad either as students or for jobs outside the country.

In the banking sector, an estimation said no fewer than 700 software engineers have deserted their jobs for better offers abroad, particularly in Europe and Canada.

The situation has been exacerbated by the desire to be paid in foreign currency as a result of the devaluation of the naira.

Apart from these 700 engineers, some other 1,000 other staff have also so far resigned from their appointments banks for flights abroad.

Many banks in Nigeria are now suffering from the negative effect of these flights, especially by way of disruptions in succession plans and hitches in the electronic and mobile banking operations of most banks.

There are always spaces to fill in the employment columns of the financial houses.

This has also led to loud complaints from bank customers on electronic and mobile banking platforms.

Industries in the broad spectrum of the economy are feeling the heat, which necessitated the April Bankers’ Committee meeting mentioned earlier.

Efforts by banks to check the trend of resignations have failed, even with the introduction of inducements like promotions.

“The most negative impact on our country is the fact that young graduates (and our highly skilled professionals) leave the country for better opportunities. Today many of our engineers, IT specialists, doctors, nurses, engineers, and very brilliant professionals are lost to other countries,” a company executive noted.

“We are blessed with many natural resources. We are free of many natural disasters. A large proportion of our population is young people, an age bracket that most of you in this hall belong to. If you JAPA, the country will rely on foreigners for needed skills in the future,” he warned.

Migration figures are difficult to get domestically but the United Nation (UN)’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs estimates the number of international migrants from Nigeria in 2020 at no fewer than 17 million, up from 990,000 a decade earlier.

*Solution
Various strategies are being employed to check the brain drain syndrome in Nigeria’s banking sector. The main driving force to this end is the industry platform, CIBN, which says it is poised to drive the process of training more skills in the areas where there has been an ‘evident deficit’.

Staff is being motivated by incentives such as promotions, which, unfortunately, may sometimes be undeserved. More are being head-hunted, and banking policies firmed up.

For example, the CIBM has said that it will “drive the process of training more skills in the area where we see deficits”.

Bank top executives said they had discussed plans to fund training for new tech-focused staffers to replace those who have left.

They also agreed to help the central bank increase the adoption of the digital currency, the eNaira.

But as laudable and cost-effective as it may sound, this has left a wide gap in the quality of services being rendered and the desirability of such services. Outsourcing, as it were, has greatly reduced the quality of services being provided by banks, especially in the core technical areas that are key to banking.

For instance, certain departments like corporate affairs, maintenance, transport, supply, and procurement are being contracted out and staffers of such departments are being laid off and thrown into the labour market.

Unfortunately, this has not in any way addressed what the banks felt would be addressed. It has rather worsened inefficiency, corruption, fraud, and other underhand dealings being experienced in the sector.

*Reactions
Speaking exclusively with ThisNigeria, a manager with one of the old-generation banks in the South-South who pleaded to speak off record, attributed the mass exodus to the economy. “It is because of the economy. The economy is not good, and the cost of living in Nigeria is becoming very high. The salary cannot sustain most people.

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Asked whether it was due to the pay factor; the banks are not paying their staff well enough, since the problem is becoming more prominent in the banking sector, he said, “No. Of course, they are paying a fine. It’s just that the money is not enough anymore because of the cost of living, and inflation.

“So, the banking profession, since it is global, and it is like there’s a lot of demand for bankers outside the country, and the naira is falling, it is better to earn in dollars or a foreign currency. When you convert it to the naira, it becomes big money. You know, a lot of people will prefer that.”

He also attributed the development to high inflation. The bank is paying okay, but inflation will not make you feel the effect and Nigeria generally is not okay now.

“As for the effect on the bank, temporarily, there might be little effects, but we then employ new hands that will now learn on the job. But on the brighter side, it creates jobs for others who require one.

“The unemployed will now be employed. You can see advertisements everywhere now. So, it is kind of good for Nigeria in the sense that, as people are leaving, somebody else will take it. I think it’s a win-win for everybody.”

Also speaking, another bank manager in Lagos, said, “It is not only the banking sector that is affected by the trending Japa situation. It’s a trend that’s happening at the moment, and that affects every sector.

“Bankers may be leaving more because they have access to funds to prosecute their international travels and relocation. So, it may look like they are the ones leaving more. But the truth of the matter is that they have more access to funds.

“Let’s be realistic, bankers in Nigeria have always been well paid. Most bankers have been able to have more financial literacy and be able to save. So, most of them, beyond saving, also have access to facilities within the bank to prosecute whatever travel they want to do.

“Access to funds and financial prowess could be one of the reasons bankers may be more suited or opportune to leave the country.

“Looking on the positive side, while people could be making a big deal out of people moving outside the country, it could be beneficial to everybody in the picture. The banks have an opportunity now to drive digital transformation, which eventually, in the long run, reduces their recurrent expenditure, keeps them afloat, and enables them to scale properly.

“The Japa people can achieve their long-time ambition of relocating. The country itself can attract foreign exchange because most of the people who go to work outside still have families in Nigeria that they have to take care of.

“In the interim, there could be some short-term danger but in operating banks, we will be able to find a way around it.”

Commenting on the wave of resignations and its likely impact on the industry, the President of the Bank Customers Association of Nigeria (BCAN), Uju Ogubunka, said, “The impact is already being felt. Many experienced and skilled bankers are already resigning for greener pastures abroad. It is a reality.

“The resignations will adversely impact the industry as “service quality will go down and people will complain and all that.”

On his part, the CEO of BIC Consulting Services, Boniface Chizea, said that he could not predict to what level the great resignation will get to before it would start to impact the banks negatively.

“There are countries out there, like Canada that have labour shortages. So, people will want to move to such places to search for work. That is why we must tackle our economic problems.”