Transnational information brokerage and migration chains among Nigerian health workers in Canada and Nigeria

Transnationalism theory suggests that migrant engagement in cross-border activities can reproduce migration by signalling to non-migrants that emigration is feasible and beneficial. This paper examines this claim using bilateral survey and interview data from 59 Nigerian health workers residing in Canada and 63 non-migrant health professionals in Nigeria. The analysis shows high levels of transnational engagement among migrants across economic (74.6%), social (88.1%), knowledge transfer (83.1%), and credential acquisition (76.3%) activities, while political participation remains low (10.2%). Migrants who participated in transnational activities were more frequently approached by contacts in Nigeria for migration advice, with 75% of Canadian respondents reporting such inquiries. However, the relationship between transnational engagement and migration aspirations in Nigeria is more complex: although 81% of Nigerian respondents expressed migration intentions, only 39% had sought information from migrants abroad, and respondents attributed their preference for Canada to institutional information channels such as immigration promotion and media narratives. This paper develops the concept of transnational information brokerage as an interpretive framework for understanding how migrants contextualize and communicate migration knowledge within transnational networks. The findings suggest that migrant advice may both encourage and moderate migration aspirations. These findings have implications for understanding health inequalities in global migration systems, particularly how access to professional integration within destination health systems is mediated by informational asymmetries. By foregrounding the role of migrant-mediated knowledge, the study also highlights the importance of credential recognition processes and migration governance structures in understanding migration decision-making and labour market experiences among internationally educated health professionals.