AI can help curb skilled workers’ migration — Expert

Politics Spice Special Features Education Sex & Relationship Interview Columns Opinion Advertise with us AI can help curb skilled workers’ migration — Expert News November 8, 2026 6:48 pm People Analytics expert, Kemisola Kasali

Nigerian employers can leverage artificial intelligence and workforce analytics to tackle rising staff turnover and curb the migration of skilled professionals, a People Analytics expert, Kemisola Kasali, has said.

Kasali said AI-powered workforce management systems could help organisations identify early signs of employee dissatisfaction, predict potential resignations and address workplace concerns before workers decide to leave.

She noted that many employers often recognise signs of employee disengagement too late, when affected workers have already made up their minds to resign.

Kasali made this known in a research paper titled, “Human-AI Collaboration for Talent Retention and Workforce Stability in Nigeria”, presented at the third International Academic Conference of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria, according to a statement issued on Sunday.

The conference, organised in collaboration with the university, examined the application of artificial intelligence in academia, industry and government, with emphasis on ethics, innovation and impact.

Making a case for AI-driven workforce management, Kasali highlighted the growing pressure on Nigeria’s labour market, particularly the migration of skilled professionals.

According to figures cited in her research, “Annual attrition among Nigerian health workers increased by 200 per cent in 2024, with 4,193 doctors and dentists leaving the country.

“Findings indicating that 52 per cent of Nigerian professionals across different sectors were actively considering migration,” she said.

Kasali said the figures underscored the urgent need for organisations to adopt proactive strategies to improve employee engagement and retain skilled workers.

According to her, AI-powered analytics could help employers monitor employee engagement, identify potential resignation risks and detect gaps between workers’ skills and available career development opportunities.

She explained that such insights would enable organisations to intervene early and address concerns relating to remuneration, career progression, workplace conditions and employee satisfaction.

However, Kasali cautioned that AI should complement, rather than replace, human judgement in human resource management.

“AI systems can identify patterns in employee behaviour and engagement, but they cannot independently establish the reasons behind an individual’s dissatisfaction or decision to leave,” she said.

She explained that employees’ decisions to resign were often influenced by personal circumstances, family responsibilities, relationships with supervisors, economic pressures and individual career expectations, which might not be adequately reflected in organisational data.

Consequently, she advocated a human-AI collaboration framework in which technology provides analytical insights while HR professionals interpret the findings and determine appropriate interventions.

Kasali also identified weak workforce data infrastructure as a major challenge to the effective adoption of AI in Nigeria.

She cited data indicating that 92.2 per cent of employed Nigerians, representing 77.6 million people, work outside structured, data-generating employment systems.

She said the high level of labour informality made it difficult to obtain reliable workforce information needed by employers and policymakers to develop evidence-based employment strategies.

Other challenges identified in the research include fragmented personnel records, inadequate analytical capacity and concerns about the handling and protection of employees’ personal information.

To address these challenges, she recommended improving workforce data quality, strengthening human resource information systems, building the analytical capacity of HR professionals and establishing clear accountability frameworks for the use of employee information.

She maintained that organisations must move beyond simply predicting employee exits to creating supportive work environments that encourage skilled professionals to remain, develop and build their careers in Nigeria.

Damilola Aina is a journalist at Punch Newspapers with over five years of experience covering energy, business, investment, infrastructure, and property sectors. He specializes in producing well-researched and insightful reports that inform readers and provide clarity on complex topics. Damilola’s work demonstrates practical newsroom experience, editorial insight, and a strong commitment to accurate and engaging journalism.

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