Tuesday, 12. August 2025
After ten years living and working in Germany, Dominic returned to Nigeria to rejoin his family and launch a pig farming business with support from ARRIVES. Now he’s on a mission to expand the farm and create job opportunities for his local community.
For ten years, Dominic lived and worked in Germany. Life there was structured and predictable. But over time, he began to feel empty. No one was learning from him; no one was growing because of him.
“I could not mentor anyone. I could not employ anyone,” he says. “Nothing I was building felt like it would last.”
He returned to Nigeria and settled in Ekpoma, Edo State. There, he founded Pury’s Farm, named after his daughter. It felt like a clean start. Something his own. Something he could leave behind.
It started with regular motorcycle rides, 37 kilometers each way, to Ujiogba, a nearby village with open land and lower costs. That’s where he planned the farm. ARRIVES supported Dominic with one-on-one coaching and helped him access business start-up support from the European Reintegration Programme (EURP).
“Even before I left Germany, ARRIVES was already guiding me,” he says. “The business coaching helped me understand the Nigerian market, test ideas and plan realistically.”
Dominic chose to begin with pigs. He built the pig farm using a deep-litter system, which keeps the space clean and reduces odour. He hired a farm manager and two logistics staff. He also bought a used truck, which he proudly calls “the first baby of the farm”, to transport feed from neighbouring rice mills.
His wife remembers the moment he came home.
“He was happy, and also not happy,” she says. “But I encouraged him. One has to start from somewhere.”
Dominic treasures her belief in his vision. “She prays for me,” he says. “She’s not on the farm every day, but I know she will want to join me in my farm work soon.”
He is already thinking about what comes next. He hopes to expand the farm by two more acres and start growing vegetables like cucumber and watermelon. He also plans to build a small meat processing shed, where customers planning weddings or family functions can buy fresh pork, goat or beef.
“People want good service,” he explains. “They should be able to drive in, and get what they need, and go.”
But more than anything, Dominic wants the farm to create jobs.
“If I have up to 100 pigs in the next two years, I can hire five or ten more people. That will mean something. That means people are eating. Their families are eating,” he says. “That would fulfill me more than the ten years I had spent in Germany.”
He hopes the farm can also become a place where young people can learn and eventually build something of their own. “If one of two of them succeed, that’s enough for me.”
For Dominic, it all comes back to food. “We have to feed.” he says. “Especially in Africa. And I see what I’m doing is working. Slowly, yes. But it’s working.”
If you or someone you know is considering voluntary return from Germany to Nigeria, contact ARRIVES today to learn more about how we can help.
You can also visit our return support page for step-by-step guidance on the support we offer, or explore our FAQ page for answers to frequently asked questions about ARRIVES.
ARRIVES is a project co-implemented by Social Impact, International Returns and Reintegration Assistance (IRARA) and International Trade Centre (ITC). It is funded by the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) of the European Commission and the German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF).
