Diaspora Empowerment and Engagement

The role of the Ghanaian Diaspora in national development has, in recent years, won unprecedented recognition from the government at the highest levels. The Government values the ideas, skills and contributions of Ghanaians abroad, just as those living in Ghana, much more than any other natural resource and therefore, considers the entire Ghanaian populace as its basic first priority. Government has therefore, taken steps to leverage Diaspora knowledge, experience, skills and financial resources to complement those at home for accelerated national development.

The general objective is to support local development projects and productive investments (collective and individual) of the Malian diaspora in Mali with i) a dedicated support mechanism for entrepreneurs in France and country of origin ii) activities with public institutions and private sector institutions to improve the investment climate in countries of origin

Activities:

The program intends to foster linkages between migration issues and private sector development, with a specific focus on financial services. Until now, many activities to foster diaspora investment in CoO have focused on capacity building of relevant state institutions and non financial services for migrant entrepreneurs. A major component of this programme is dedicated support the development of financial services that take into account the needs and specificities of diaspora members (remittances transfer, access to loans, savings products).

Following requests from migrant associations in France to be considered as development actors, the French government has provided support for empowerment and capacity building of diaspora organizations.

This has led to the creation in 2002 of a national platform of more than 700 migrant association that undertake development activities in Sub-Saharan Africa, Maghreb, South east Asia, the Caribbean and the Indian ocean.

The FORIM is now widely recognized as an important actor in the migration and development field, including at EU and international level.

Provide future newcomers to Canada with pre-arrival support services to obtain employment, support entrepreneurships and self-employment. Through its services and the numerous partnerships it promotes, IOM supports a number of positive changes that contributes to helping newcomer’s access economic opportunity and financial sustainability. That includes: marketing existing services; providing one-on-one support; tailoring support to specific city and/or area and; facilitating networking and access to financial support.

• Launched to address a specific and pressing need to enhance retention of newcomers, this program provides newcomers with information, advice, and contacts with the local business community.

• Specifically, this initiative focuses on the provision of information and effective connections to the business community that will lead to the establishment of new businesses and the successful settlement of client newcomer entrepreneurs and their families.

In Morocco, IOM is assisting Moroccan expatriates based in Belgium to establish businesses in their communities by: (a) providing financial support; (b) through a partnership with the Solvay Business School, providing technical support in business planning and; (c) helping to navigate the bureaucratic procedures for establishing a business in Morocco. Through this project, IOM also manages a website that provides information on opportunities as well as how to invest and start a business in Morocco (www.guide-entreprise.org/maroc).

Eritrean women, including those still in immigration processes and abroad are invited and welcomed to join Eritrean diaspora organizations, such as women associations.  Diaspora women associations have contributed greatly to the establishment of institutions that aim to empower women in Eritrea. They have collected money and financed the construction of office buildings in several areas in Eritrea intended for women and their development through training, job offers, counseling, and assistance.

IOM's MIDA program, launched in 2001 and operating in eleven African countries, supports the short or longer term (or virtual) return of expatriate skills to key sectors. In each country, a multi-sectoral MIDA Steering Committee is set up, with the aim of greater coherence within the governments. The networks of participants strengthen interactions between origin and destination countries, which may stimulate further returns and development projects involving diaspora and/or the productive use of remittances.

The Malian government implements Diaspora fora to connect and build confidence with its diaspora. The first Diaspora Forum in 2003 was the opportunity to discuss three topics: