Esther Adeyanju: Why Do Nigerians Celebrate People Who Succeed Abroad?

A simple Instagram scroll turned into a moment of unexpected national pride for writer Esther Adeyanju. A basketball highlight flashed across her screen—someone soaring through the air, dunking with effortless confidence. The name that followed stopped her mid-scroll: OG Anunoby. More specifically, Ogugua Anunoby. That unmistakably Nigerian name sparked something familiar, something deeper than casual sports fandom.

What happened next is a ritual many Nigerians know intimately. The immediate Google search. The hunt for that golden phrase: “My parents are from Nigeria.” The flood of green-white-green flag emojis in comment sections. The collective claiming of someone else’s international success as communal victory. Adeyanju found herself doing exactly what thousands of Nigerians do daily—staking emotional ownership over excellence that happens to carry a surname from home. But this time, she paused to ask the uncomfortable question lurking beneath the celebration: Why do we do this? Why does Nigerian achievement abroad feel more worthy of celebration than Nigerian achievement at home?

The answer, Adeyanju suggests, isn’t about victory at all—it’s about longing. Every Nigerian name thriving internationally serves as both inspiration and indictment, proof that talent was never Nigeria’s problem. The country overflows with brilliance: kids playing barefoot football with professional precision, entrepreneurs building empires despite unreliable power, students competing globally with half the resources. What Nigeria lacks isn’t talent but the infrastructure to nurture it. The systems that transform raw potential into realized excellence. The belief that staying doesn’t mean settling. Until Nigeria becomes the destination rather than the departure point, its diaspora will continue carrying the weight of national pride on foreign stages. The real question isn’t why Nigerians celebrate success abroad—it’s when Nigeria will create conditions where that success chooses to stay home.

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