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The potential role of a country's diaspora in
national development efforts has in recent years
gained growing international recognition, both in
political and academic/research circles as well as
among diaspora members themselves.
Indeed, faced with an important loss of their
highly trained manpower to industrialized nations
through the brain drain, developing countries are
increasingly turning towards their citizens abroad
to contribute to national growth.
The interest in the actual and potential
contribution of diaspora groups to development in
their countries of birth is also manifest in related
programs established by such international bodies as
the International Organization for Migration, the
United Nations Development Programme, and the World
Bank.
The issue is also attracting growing interest in
Western countries as immigrants establish themselves,
grow in number and begin to reflect on how their
communities of origin could benefit from their
achievements.
The international research community has examined
transnational migration from a wide range of
perspectives but has traditionally tended to focus
on the economic and social integration of migrants
in their new countries, their impact on
international trade relations, and the importance
and role of remittances. However, as studies
published over the past 2-3 years indicate, there is
now more interest in exploring the diverse roles
that diaspora communities could play in economic
growth and poverty reduction in their native lands.
From the perspective of the diaspora, many have
started thinking about and have mobilized around
their role as full partners in development
cooperation. To cite the most obvious examples,
members of the Indian and Chinese diaspora have
significantly contributed to development in their
homelands, effectively serving as what the late
Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi, referred to
as "a bank from which one could make withdrawals
from time to time."
While this introductory piece sought to establish
the issue of diaspora and development within the
current international context, the column will
mainly focus on diaspora matters as they relate to
African development in general and that of Ethiopia
in particular. My intent is to use this space to
disseminate information on the African diaspora and
its role in the capacity building efforts of the
continent (with a focus on Ethiopia), to engage in
constructive dialogue and debate about the
challenges posed by the brain drain and the use of
diaspora resources to mitigate its effects, and
generally, to widen the discussion on this topic.
Future articles will, among others, explore the
meaning of the term "diaspora", which though much
used, is rarely clearly defined. The profile of
various African and Ethiopian diaspora groups and
personalities explore various modalities of diaspora
participation in national capacity building efforts,
discuss local perceptions of diaspora engagement,
etc. We will also investigate the role of various
stakeholders in facilitating diaspora engagement.
These include governments from both home and host
countries, African bodies such as the African Union
and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD),
international organizations, relevant local civil
society organizations as well as the private sector.
Bathseba H. Belai is an independent
researcher based in Montreal, Canada. She is
currently conducting a study on mechanisms to
facilitate an effective and sustainable engagement
of the African diaspora in the continent's capacity
building efforts, with a focus on Ethiopia as a case
study.
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