Presently, close to two million Ethiopians are living in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and other parts of the world. Undeniably, the active participation of these large diaspora communities in the ongoing national development endeavors is indispensable.
In fact, to consolidate the Diasporas engagement in the nation building task, the Diaspora Engagement Affairs General Directorate was established in 2002. And the government of Ethiopia has also declared a national diaspora day. For the first time, the diaspora day is being celebrated throughout the country this week.
Of course, in this summertime, many diaspora members are coming to visit their country and families. Thus, there will be a huge gathering of diaspora communities this week. Apart from getting timely information pertaining to the ongoing development activities in the country, the day will create a good opportunity for diaspora members to exchange views with senior officials. It is going to be a firsthand experience for the diaspora as they will visit a number of big projects that are game changers in the nation’s economy.
Indeed, there are numerous diaspora members who are investing in their homeland making use of the prevailing conducive investment opportunities in the country. In one way or another, these members of diaspora are contributing a lot in the nation building process, through their expertise and wealth.
In crystal clear view, the engagement of the diaspora members in the day to day activities of their homeland is vital and needs to be further strengthened using various means of communications.
It is true that celebrating diaspora day by itself is not enough. There should be consecutive business to business meetings between the diaspora communities and local investors in a bid to unleash the rich trade potentials in the country.
Moreover, the Diasporas have to seize the day to disseminate timely business information about their country of residence. They as well need to open joint venture business with local and foreign businessmen.
Obviously, Ethiopia is not benefiting much from its large diaspora community due to various reasons. The government has been issuing and preparing policies that will hopefully facilitate the participation of the Diasporas in different development activities. But, the policies have not yet been fully implemented.
On several occasions, the Diasporas have voiced complaints regarding bureaucratic red tape and lack of good governance. Therefore, the government and other pertinent bodies must put into consideration the complaints that are lodged by the diaspora in order to ward off hurdles and create a win -win situation.
Diasporas need to work as ambassadors of their homeland. They have a moral obligation and responsibility of conveying the right message to their fellow brothers, sisters and the rest of the world regarding the existing exemplary peace, stability and development of Ethiopia. They as well need to expose those who work day and night to tarnish the image of their homeland circuiting fabricated and unfounded stories.
No matter what doom Sayers are uttering, Ethiopia is raising and registering rapid economic growth and the Diasporas have to play active role in attracting many more investors and tourists to Ethiopia in addition to fighting rent seeking mentality of some individuals who want to be rich through short cuts.
In general, the week marks a step forward to celebrate the Diaspora day every year in an organized manner and the nation needs to draw lessons from the best practices of other countries in this regard. The engagement of Ethiopian diaspora in the development endeavors is part and parcel of the just kicked off Growth and Transformation Plan.
[TheEthiopianHerald]