Prominent educationist and tech entrepreneur Alex Onyia has sparked national debate after openly questioning the Nigerian government’s persistent reliance on foreign contractors for road construction projects, despite the country producing thousands of trained engineers annually.
In a strongly worded post shared on his official X (formerly Twitter) account, Onyia lamented the perceived underutilization of local expertise, calling it both “wasteful and insulting” to Nigerian professionals.
“Every year, Nigeria produces over 10,000 engineering graduates from our universities and polytechnics. Are we saying they are not good enough to build our own roads?” Onyia asked. “Why do we consistently hire foreign firms for basic infrastructure when we have capable hands here?”
The federal and many state governments have, for decades, awarded major construction contracts especially for roads and bridges to companies from countries such as China, Germany, and Lebanon, citing reasons ranging from equipment superiority to financial guarantees tied to foreign loans.
Critics like Onyia argue that the trend undermines local capacity, kills job opportunities, and fuels a brain drain as skilled Nigerian engineers seek greener pastures abroad.
“We scream youth unemployment, yet we deny our brightest minds a chance to prove themselves. That’s a national contradiction,” he added.
The Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) has echoed Onyia’s concerns in the past, lamenting that only a small percentage of federal infrastructure projects are awarded to indigenous firms. They point to barriers such as lack of access to capital, favoritism in contract bidding, and doubts over project delivery timelines.
However, some government officials maintain that most large-scale projects require technical experience and financial resources that local firms often lack especially when funded by international development loans tied to foreign contractors.
Onyia’s comment has gone viral, igniting discussion across social media and in professional circles.
“We train engineers, but we don’t empower them. That’s like growing food and still starving,” wrote one user on X.
Others argued that while Nigerian engineers are capable, more collaboration between local and foreign firms could be a viable middle ground to ensure skills transfer and project efficiency.
Onyia called on the government to publish data on local contractor involvement, commit to capacity-building initiatives, and introduce legislation that mandates a quota of local firms in all federally funded infrastructure projects.
As Nigeria continues its aggressive infrastructure drive under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, questions around self-reliance, national pride, and the role of local talent in nation-building are once again front and center.
For Onyia and many others, the message is clear: Nigeria must begin to trust Nigerians.
