We need the Diaspora in dev’t efforts

A few days ago, I had the honour of being invited to the Imbuto foundation Youth series. The theme was “What do you stand for” and the debate was quite interesting. One of the subjects that kept coming up was migration: “why do Africans love to go abroad?”; “Is it really necessary?” And many more questions in that sense. Even though I agree with some of the arguments, this, in my opinion, is the wrong approach to the issue, and felt compelled to present my argument during a question and answer session with H.E President Paul Kagame. I told the President that in my opinion, migration is here to stay; it is a global phenomenon with positive and negative aspects. When people go abroad for studies or business, they bring their country with them, and they bring back a bit of the outside. But instead of focusing on the two aspects of whether or not to leave, we should be focusing on the links between the Diaspora and home, focusing on improving that link. The President answered that it is good to go abroad, when you are going for the right reasons, and we should make it easy for people to do that. But we should make it even easier for them to come back. That comment from the President strengthened our resolve, as the umbrella organisation of the Rwandan Communities Abroad (RCAs), to implement our two cornerstone projects: “Diaspora Homecoming Month” and “No Rwandan Left Behind Initiative”. The first is about facilitating Rwandans abroad who want to visit and participate in the economy, tourism or other activities, while the second one aims to combine all philanthropic activities of the Diaspora in one development program for the country, with a clear goal: poverty alleviation. The homecoming month, is an initiative to package many existing and new activities of interest to the Diaspora and will be taking place in December of each year. It is the month when most come home, and it is the month of the national dialogue. By marketing these events together, on social networks and in the communities, we make it easier for Rwandans abroad to plan their stay home. No Rwandan Left Behind seeks to make the organised Rwandan communities abroad into a development partner for the government. Last year, during the 10th commemoration of the Genocide against the Tutsi, President Kagame outlined the three pillars of Rwanda’s miraculous recovery after 1994: unity, accountability, thinking big. These are the same pillars of this programme. On accountability, each community will be responsible for its own fundraising, will set its own goals, and will be held accountable; through thinking big, we want to eliminate poverty, by contributing directly to programmes such as Girinka and mutuelle de santé, relieving the government of a huge burden; about unity, this global effort will unite Rwandan Communities Abroad in solidarity with our home. In December last year, the Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda, Mr Shen YongXiang hosted a cocktail party where he said in his toast: “I have been a diplomat for more than 30 years, been all over the world, but 3 countries have impressed me with their Diaspora: China, Israel and Rwanda. These countries share similarities that have made them very successful with their Diaspora`. First they are countries that experienced catastrophic events in recent memory and came out stronger, giving them a deep sense of unity and responsibility. Secondly, they are counties with a rich history and strong culture, helping them keep the connection with the Motherland. Thirdly and most importantly, the governments actively reach out and nurture the diaspora, with well thought out government policies for their Diaspora.” Rwanda indeed has one of the most comprehensive Diaspora policies in Africa, and the results speak for themselves: according to remittance figures from the central bank, official remittances from Diaspora reached $174 million in 2014, second only to tourism as a source of revenue, more than minerals, coffee and tea. Real figures are probably more than that, as many of the remittances pass through unofficial channels. This in fact means that Rwandans abroad are Rwanda’s best export, and one that keeps on giving. As the communities abroad get stronger, the remittances will keep growing, so will investment and trade with the motherland. As much as our country has progressed, so too has the Rwandan communities abroad. Having lived in Beijing-China for 12 years, I had a front row seat as our community grew from less than 50 to more than a thousand that are active today. As VP of the Rwanda Diaspora Global Network, our committee has achieved great success in strengthening the RCAs, going from 46 mostly isolated and uncoordinated RCAs in 2014, to 70 organized and connected RCAs today. We made communication our first priority, built multiple communication channels, from social networks to WhatsApp groups, and helped many RCAs to establish and organize themselves. More importantly, they are sharing experience, strengthening the RCA family. None of this would be possible of course without the continued support of the government through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Yesterday, we hosted the inaugural “Diaspora Homecoming Day” event at Gorilla Golf Hotel in Nyarutarama where we presented the two flagship programmes, and launched a dialogue with our constituents and partners on how to achieve even more in 2016. The writer is the Vice President of the Rwanda Diaspora Global Network

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We need the Diaspora in dev’t efforts