Nigerian Lady Breaks Silence On 9-Year Ordeal As Maid In Egypt, Reveals Shocking Treatment

A Nigerian woman has recounted her difficult experience working as a domestic worker in Cairo, Egypt, after travelling from Nigeria in 2016 in search of better economic opportunities.

Speaking during an interview with content creator Egungun, the woman, who is now in her early 30s, said she spent about nine years in Egypt, including seven and a half years working as a maid.

According to Bush Radio Academy, she said her experience took a devastating turn after she was involved in an accident in which she fell from a nine-storey building, leaving her with little of what she had worked to acquire over the years.

She explained that she travelled to Egypt because of the financial difficulties faced by her family, despite not initially wanting to leave Nigeria.

“When we leave Nigeria to go to Arab countries, we’re already turned to slaves. The experience is crazy. I didn’t wish to go, but I came from a very poor family background,” she said.

The woman further alleged that domestic workers in her situation faced difficult working conditions, including having their passports withheld by employers or intermediaries until outstanding payments were settled.

She said she earned approximately ₦100,000 monthly at the time and claimed that she sometimes had to sleep on the floor or on her employer’s dog bed.

“They usually treat us like slaves, as if we don’t have anyone. When we get there, they take our passport and seize it till you finish paying. My salary then was ₦100,000 monthly. Sometimes I sleep on their dog’s bed or on the floor,” she recounted.

According to her, she was also unable to communicate freely with her family for several years because of the circumstances surrounding her employment and the repayment of money owed.

She said that after eventually settling the payments, she was able to reconnect with her family, only to discover that her mother had become ill.

The woman’s account highlights the challenges she says she experienced as a Nigerian domestic worker abroad, including difficult living conditions, restricted communication with family members and the devastating impact of the accident that occurred after years of work in Egypt.