Diasporas are dynamic, social, economic and political players in their home and destina-tion countries. They may act independently, in collaboration with and, at times, in spite of governments. Diasporas generally have not waited for governments to mobilize them, yet public initiatives targeting diasporas have burgeoned in recent years, raising questions about the interaction between governments and diasporas and the role of policy.

This publication explores different challenges posed to home and host country governments engaging with their diasporas for development purposes. How to define diasporas? How to gather data on diasporas? How to incorporate diaspora contributions into development strategies? How to identify most relevant partners within the diasporas? What incentives are conducive to diaspora contributions? What resources are available within diasporas and how can their impact on development be maximized? What is the role for policy?

These are some of the questions raised in this publication, based on findings from data and studies in this field, combined with original knowledge extracted from IOM research and operational experience. In its conclusion, the report sketches out a diaspora policy roadmap, intentioned to assist decision makers eager to collaborate with their diasporas for development purposes.

The heterogeneity of the individuals within diasporas and the diversity of goals pursued by them individually or collectively are some of the greatest challenges for policy. Without a favourable policy environment, supporting structures and mutual trust, diasporas’ development potential might be curtailed.

IOM • OIM

Engaging Diasporas as Development Partners for Home and Destination Countries: Challenges for Policymakers

No. 26

ISSN 1607-338X

Also available online at:http://www.iom.int

MRS

26

I O M

O I M

Opinions expressed in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily reflectthe views of IOM.

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IOM is committed to the principle that humane and orderly migration benefits migrantsand society. As an intergovernmental body, IOM acts with its partners in the internationalcommunity to: assist in meeting the operational challenges of migration; advance under-standing of migration issues; encourage social and economic development through migration; and uphold the human dignity and well-being of migrants.

Publisher: International Organization for Migration17 route des Morillons1211 Geneva 19SwitzerlandTel: +41.22.717 91 11Fax: +41.22.798 61 50E-mail: hq@iom.intInternet: http://www.iom.int

Editor: Ilse Pinto-Dobernig_______________

ISSN 1607-338X© 2006 International Organization for Migration (IOM)

_______________

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrievalsystem, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy-ing, recording, or otherwise without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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MRS 26 IC.qxp 06-Nov-06 14:18 Page 1

Engaging Diasporas as Development Partners for Home and Destination Countries:

Challenges for Policymakers

Prepared for IOM by

Dina IonescuInternational Organization for Migration

Geneva

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CONTENTS

Executive Summary 7

Introduction 8Rationale 8Scope 9BriefOverviewoftheStateofKnowledge 10

Defining and Gathering Data on Diasporas 13DefiningaMultifacetedReality 13DiasporaDefinitionandPolicyImplications 14DataCollectiononDiasporas 15PolicyImplicationsofDataCollection 19

Incorporating Diaspora Contributions into Development Strategies 21HomeCountryStrategies 21HostCountryStrategies 24DiasporasattheCrossroadsofInterests

betweenHomeandHostCountries 26

Partnering with Relevant Diasporas 27TypologyofDiasporaInitiatives 27PolicyImplications 31

Defining Home Country Programmes and Incentives Conducive to Diaspora Engagement for Development 34

ProgrammaticResponses 34InstitutionalArrangements 36Incentives 37

Identifying Diaspora Resources for Development 40 HumanCapital 40

FinancialandEntrepreneurialCapital 44SocialCapital 48AffectiveCapital 50LocalCapital 51

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Conclusions and Recommendations 53WhatRoleforPolicy? 53Recommendations 54DiasporaPolicyRoadmap 6220QuestionstoGuidePolicy 66

Annex 68

References 74

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ACkNOwlEdgEmENTS

IamverygratefultoFrankLaczko,HeadofResearchandPublicationsandEricaUsher,formerHeadofStrategicPolicyandPlanningfortheoversighttheyprovidedtothiswork.Inaddition,IwouldliketothankMicheleKlein-SolomonandGervaisAppavefortheirguidanceandconstantsupportandtoexpressparticulargratitudetoIlsePinto-Dobernigforhercommentsandthorougheditorialwork.

ManyIOMcolleaguesofferedtheirexpertiseandcontributedthroughdiscussionsorcommentstothiswork,inparticular:ClarissaAzkoul,NilimBaruah,CynthiaBry-ant,PhilippeBoncour,Anne-MarieBushmann-Petit,Jean-PhilippeChauzy,LaurentiuCiobanica,LaurentDeBoeck,SilviaEkra,IdaMaeFernandez,ChristopheFranzetti,NicolettaGiordano,DeniseGlasscock,DanielleGrondin,ShahidulHaque,CharlesHarns,JobstKöhler,AlinaNarusova,NdioroNdiaye,SophieNonnenmacher,JoséAngelOropeza,RobertPaiva,RedouaneSaadi,MeeraSethi,IulianaStefan,YorioTanimura, Damien Thuriaux, Sofia Warttmann and Vasoontara Yiengprugsawan.Manythankstoallofthem,aswellastoIOM’spublishingteam:CarolSanMiguelandSegundodelaCruz.

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ExECuTivE SummAry

Thispaperreviewsexistingpoliciesaimedatengagingdiasporasfordevelopmentpurposes,anddiscussesthepolicycontextandfactorsthatfacilitatetheirmobiliza-tion.Itaddressesanumberofkeypolicychallengesinthelightofongoingnationalpractices,generalresearchevidence,andIOM’sresearchandoperationalexperience.Nationalpolicyapproachesandagrowingnumberofpilotprogrammesarereviewed,providingacombinedanalysisofpoliciesandprogrammes.Consideringthatattentionatnationalandinternationallevelislargelyfocusedonremittancesandremittancepolicies,thispaperalsoexamineshowpolicymakerscouldenhancethenon-financialcontributionsmadebydiasporas.Thematerialpresentedinthisdocumentaimstoinformpolicymakersinhomeandhostcountriesonexistingpracticesandtoprovideaguideforthoseengagedinformulatingpoliciestoengagediasporasasactivepartnersfordevelopment,inparticularincountriesoforigin.

Thepaperidentifiesanddiscussessomeofthekeystagesforpolicydevelopment,startingwiththedefinitionofdiasporas,datagatheringondiasporasandtheirrespec-tivepolicyimplications.Thedocumentthenexaminesthedevelopmentneedsandstrategiestowhichdiasporascancontributeandtheroleofdiaspora-driveninitia-tives.Existingprogrammesandincentivesinthehomecountriesaimingtofavourrelationswithdiasporas are subsequentlydiscussed.Finally, thepaper explores adiversityofdiasporaresources(human,financial,entrepreneurial,social,affectiveandlocal)andidentifiesvariousmeanstoencouragetheproductivecontributionstobemadebydiasporas.

Thepaperconcludeswithadiscussionofthepolicyroleinsupportingdiasporasandmaximizingtheircontributionsforthebenefitofmigrants,homeandhostcoun-triesandincludesalistofpolicyrecommendationsandaroadmapsummarizingthekeystagesofdiasporaspolicymaking.

Diasporashavebeenmakingcontributionsforalongtime,withoutwaitingforpolicytomobilizethemandsometimeseveninspiteofthese.However,diasporacontributionsaredirectly related to institutional frameworks, socio-economicset-tings,politicalenvironmentsaswellasissuesofperceptions,images,trustandsocialidentification,inboththehomeandhostcountry.Whilethereisagrowingpolicyinterest in tapping,mobilizingandchannellingdiasporacontributions, the roleofpoliciesshouldbeclearlydefined,andtheapproachesthatcaneffectivelyfacilitatetheengagementofdiasporasfordevelopmentunderstoodtoensurethatdiasporasarenotdeprivedoftheownershipoftheircontributions.

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i. iNTrOduCTiON

rationale

Theroleofdiasporasindevelopmentstrategies,povertyreductionandeconomicgrowthisattractingconsiderablepolicyinterest,involvingdiasporas,hostcountriesandhomecountries.The interestsof thesediverse stakeholdersmeet aroundonemainquestion:Whatcanbedonetodaytomaximizethedevelopmentbenefitsofmigrationforall?

Theterm“diasporas”referstoexpatriategroupswhich,incontrastto“migrants”,appliestoexpatriatepopulationsabroadandgenerationsbornabroadtoforeignparentswhoareormaybecitizensoftheircountriesofresidence.Theoveralldevelopmentpotentialofthepeoplereferredasdiasporascanreachsignificantlevels,involvingsuchareasasbusinesscreation,tradelinks,investments,remittances,skillscircula-tion,exchangeofexperiencesandevenimpactsonsocialandculturalrolesofmenandwomeninthehomesociety.

Somemajortrendsexplaintheamplificationofthepolicyinterestindiasporas.Thereisincreasingawarenessamongcountriesoftheirown“diasporas”andtheirpotentialforpovertyreduction,developmentandeconomicgrowth.Thishastriggeredinitiativestocollectdata,toreachouttodiasporagroups,toadvocatedualcitizen-shipandtopositivelyinfluencetheimagesandperceptionsofexpatriatesinhomeandhostcountries.Themultiplicationoforganizeddiasporainitiativescorrespondstotheaffirmationofthecivilsocietyasamajordevelopmentplayerandtheincreaseingrass-rootinitiatives.Inmanycases,diasporagroupshaveplayedalobbyingroleandinfluencedpublicawarenessonexpatriatepopulationsabroad.Internetandothertelecommunicationmeanshavebeeninstrumentalinthisexpansion,whilemoderntransportsystemsarefacilitatingmobility.Finally,therecognitionofthelimitsofmanytraditionaldevelopmentpoliciesfavourstheexplorationofnewandcomplementarydevelopmentavenues.

Thereareneverthelesssomemajorlimitationstotheinvolvementofdiasporasindevelopmentpoliciestoday.Firstofall,migrationphenomenaingeneralarenotwellintegratedintodevelopmentpoliciesandmanyprogrammesaredevelopedwithoutsharing knowledge and resources. For instance, very few national developmentstrategiesincludeexpatriatenetworksasformalpartners.Fewstudiesassesstherealimpactoftheinfluencediasporashaveondevelopmentthroughtrade,investments,

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businessexchanges,socialnetworksandhumancapitaltransfers,thuslimitingdataontheeconomicandsocialcontributionsofdiasporas.Besides,evenfewerstudiesarticulatetheintereststhathostandhomecountryhaveintransnationalpopulationsoranalysepossibleconflictsofthoseinterests.

Scope

Thispaperisbasedontherecognitionthat,despiteanewbodyofresearchondiasporaswithadevelopmentfocus,thereisaknowledgegapatthepolicylevelre-gardingthepoliciesbeingimplemented,theinstitutionsincharge,theprogrammesandtoolsthatactuallyfacilitatediasporacontributions,andofwhatworksandwhatdoesnot. Itshouldalsobementionedthatatpresentpolicy interest isverymuchfocusedonongoingmigrationflowsandinparticularontemporarylabourmigrationschemes.Diasporastudiesareofspecificinterestastheycanrefocuspolicyattentiononadifferenttarget,namelyexpatriatesbasedpermanentlyabroad,second-generationnationalsandpeoplewhoacquirecitizenshipintheirhostcountrybutneverthelesswishtocontinuetosupporttheirhomecountrydevelopment.

Theobjectiveistoexaminewhatweknowatthisstageaboutengagingdiaspo-rasfordevelopmentandtoproposearoadmapforpolicymakersbasedonexistingevidence.Thispapercomplementsexistingresearchondiasporas,asitaddressesthedifferentstagesofpolicymakinginengagingdiasporasfordevelopment,usingfind-ingsfromdataandstudiesinthisfield,combinedwithoriginalknowledgeextractedfromIOMresearchsuchasthesurveyon“DiasporasPolicies”undertakenbyIOMinFebruary2005,1theWorld Migration Report2005,2aswellaslessonsdrawnfromIOMoperationalexperience.

Inadditiontothepolicyfocus,thispaperalsooffersaglobalthematicscope,asitdoesnotequatediasporaswithremittancetransfersbutratherexploresthedifferentsocial,human,affective,financialandbusinessdimensionsinvolved.Thedocumentusesexamplesfromworldwidediasporapolicyexperiencesandfromdevelopedanddevelopingcountriesalike.Thedocumentistargetedatamixedaudience,includ-ingpolicymakersandpractitionersdealingwithdiasporapoliciesfordevelopment.However,thisresearchdoesnotanalysespecificdiasporainitiatives,northepoliticalandculturaldimensionsofdiasporapolicies;noraretheinformationandanalysespresentedexhaustive.

Thispaperpresentsanoverviewofthestateofknowledgeondiasporapolicies.Itthenaddressesanumberofchallengesinregardtodiasporapolicydevelopment:

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1. Howtodefineandgatherdataondiasporas?2. Howtoincorporatediasporacontributionsintothedevelopmentstrategiesofthe

homeandthehostcountry?3. Howtoidentifyappropriatepartnerswithinthediasporas?4. Whatinstitutionalframeworksandincentivescanfacilitatediasporaengagement

fordevelopmentinthehomecountry?5. Whatresourcesareavailablewithindiasporasthatcouldcontributetodevelopment

andhowcanthesebemaximized?

Thepaperconcludeswithadiscussionofpoliciesinsupportingandmaximizingdiasporacontributions,asummaryofrecommendationsbasedonlessonslearntfromexistingstudiesandpolicyexperience,andalistofkeypolicyissuestoguideandsupportpolicydevelopment.

Brief overview of the state of knowledge

Diasporastudieshavecommonlyproceededfromasociologicalandanthropologic-alperspective,3suchasexploringgroupidentityandbelongingaswellasdealingwithnetworks4andcollectivedimensions.However,todaydiasporasareprogressivelydealtwithinthepoliticalsciences,economicsandthestudyofinternationalrelations.Awiderangeofpoliticalscienceliteraturedealswithdiasporasthroughthestudyoftransnationalism,5whereindividualchoicesandtrajectoriestranscendthenationstateandsingleculturalandnational identitiesandaffiliations.Inadditiontoscholarlyliterature,anumberofeventsatnational,regionalortheinternationallevel6drawpolicyattentiontodiasporas.Afewstudiesexplorehowdiasporasfacilitatesocialandeconomicdevelopmentintheirhomelandsandmakethelinkbetweenwhatisknownaboutdiasporasandtheimplicationsatpolicylevel.

Anumberofacademicauthorstendtousethenotionof“transnationalcommu-nities”toemphasizetheideaofmovementandexchangebetweenhomeandhostcountries,andtoattractattentiontotheexistenceofinformalnetworksthatcontributetowhatareoftencircularmovements.However,thenotionof“diaspora”seemstobetterincorporatepopulationsthatare“settled”abroad,peoplewhobecamecitizensoftheirhostcountryandsecond-borngenerations.Moreover,theterm“diaspora”waspreferredinthispaper,giventhewidespreaduseofthistermatpolicylevel.

Themigrationanddevelopmentliteratureofferssomeinsightsintodiasporaissueswithageographicalfocus.7Fromathematicperspective, themajorityofresearchpapersdealwithcontributionstothedevelopmentofthehomecountrybyexpatriate

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populationsabroad,inparticularthroughremittances,8andwiththeissuesofbraincirculation/drain/gain/waste.9Agrowingliteratureisavailable,composedofsurveysorstudiesonremittances,transferfacilitationmodalitiesanddevelopmentobjectives.However,thisliteraturedealsmainlywiththeprivatetransfersmigrantsmaketotheirfamilies, and is rarely related toother typesofdiaspora transfers, eitherfinancial(investments,trade,etc.)ornon-financial(technicalandbusinessskills,etc.).Skillscirculationismainlyaddressedfromtheperspectiveofbraindrain,workers’rightsandthemobilityofthehighlyskilled,exploringhowtoharnessthepotentialofreturns,withparticularemphasisonthemedicalsector.10

Diasporacontributionstodevelopmentandmeasurestomaximizetheirpotentialareincreasinglyaddressedthroughthemigrationanddevelopmentliterature.11JohnsonandSedaca12(2004),forinstance,provideamostusefulsummaryofdiaspora-relateddevelopmentprogrammeslookingatremittances,communitydevelopment,diasporabusinesslinkages,diasporainvestmentinstrumentsandknowledgetransfers.LowellandGerova13(2004)provideavaluablecategorizationofdiasporamechanisms,in-cluding“optimalbrainstrain,returnmigration,financialinstruments,entrepreneurialinvestments,hometownassociations,immigrationandtradeandprofessionaldiasporanetworks”.Newland14(2004)analysestheimpactofdiasporainputsonpovertyre-ductionandofferssuggestionsfordonorstostrengthentheimpactofdevelopmentassistancebymakingtransnationalismanenginefordevelopment.Finally,DeHaas15(2006)focusesonhostcountrystrategiesincasestudiesoftheNetherlands,theUnitedKingdomandFrance,aswellasoninternationalagenciesandongoinginitiativestargetingdiasporasfordevelopment.

Additionally,themigrationanddevelopmentnexusisdiscussedatlargebyinter-nationalorganizations16andgovernments17andinnumerousregionalandinternationalconferences.18Box1presentsafewselectedinternationalinitiativesemphasizingthepotentialroleofdiasporas,whileIOM’sinitiativesandprogrammesarepresentedinAnnex1.

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BOX 1

European Commission Communication on “Migration and Development: Some Concrete Recommendations”, September 2005

ThedocumentbuildsontheDecember2002ECCommunicationasacontributiontosettingupaframeworkforintegratingmigrationissuesintotheEUexternalrela-tionsanddevelopmentpolicies.TheCommunicationwasdevelopedinconsultationwithanumberofinternationalorganizations.Diasporasarerecognizedaspotentialactorsfordevelopmentofthecountriesoforigin.TheCommissionemphasizestwomainareasofwork:identifyandengagediasporaorganizationsindevelopmentstrategies,andsetupdatabaseswheremembersofdiasporascanregistervolunta-rily.Initsannexes,theCommunicationputsforwardseveralconcreteorientationsforEUcontributionsandrelatesthisexercisewiththeframeworkoftheAENEASProgrammeforpotentialfunding.

The Global Commission on International Migration (GCIM), October 2005

GCIMhasbeenestablishedtoimprovecooperationamongUNandotherin-ternationalagencies,andaimstoprovideacomprehensiveresponsetomigrationissues.Thefinalreport,releasedinOctober2005,devotesonechapterto“MigrationandDevelopment”,realizingthepotentialofhumanmobility.Thereportusestheterm“diasporas”andemphasizes,inparticular,theroleofhometownassociationsandthegrowthofsocialnetworks.Atpolicylevelthereportunderlinestheroleofgovernmentsinmobilizingknowledgenetworksandsupportingtradeandinvest-mentsdrivenbydiasporas.

High-level Dialogue on International Migration and Development, UN General Assembly, September 2006

In2006theHigh-levelDialogueat theUNGeneralAssemblydiscussedthemultidimensionalaspectsof internationalmigrationanddevelopment.Thecon-tributionsbydiasporastodevelopmentwereaddressedwithintheproposedfourmainroundtables:(1)Effectsofinternationalmigrationoneconomicandsocialdevelopment;(2)measurestoensuretherespectforandprotectionofthehumanrightsofallmigrants,andtopreventandcombatthesmugglingofmigrantsandthetraffickinginpersons;(3)multidimensionalaspectsofinternationalmigrationanddevelopment,includingremittancesand(4)promotingthebuildingofpartnershipsandcapacitybuildingandthesharingofbestpracticesatalllevels,includingatthebilateralandregionallevels,forthebenefitofcountriesandmigrantsalike.

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ii. dEfiNiNg ANd gAThEriNg dATA ON diASpOrAS

defining a multifaceted reality

Thereisnosingleaccepteddefinitionoftheterm“diaspora”,19neitheristherealegalrecognitionofthetermwhichconsequentlyhasgivenrisetomanydifferentmeaningsand interpretations.For thepurposeof thispaper,abroaddefinitionof“diasporas”isproposedas:members of ethnic and national communities, who have left, but maintain links with, their homelands.Theterm“diasporas”conveystheideaoftransnationalpopulations,livinginoneplace,whilestillmaintainingrelationswiththeirhomelands,beingboth“here”and“there”.WedonotcapitalizethefirstlettertoavoidtheconfusionwiththehistoricJewishorGreekDiaspora,andpurposelyusethepluraltoreflectthediversityofpopulationsthatcanbeacknowledgedasdiasporas.

Countrieshaveadopteddifferentwaysofreferringtotheir“diasporas”.Thewealthofexistingtermsisthefirstsignofthepolicyinterestinthesepopulations:nationals abroad,permanent immigrants,citizen of (X) origin living abroad,non-resident of (X) origin,persons of (X) origin,expatriates,transnational citizens.Thesetermsareusedtocovermultiplerealitiesthatdifferfromcountrytocountry:peoplesettledinahostcountryonapermanentbasis,labourmigrantsbasedabroadforaperiodoftime,dualcitizens,ethnicdiasporas,citizensofthehostcountryorsecond-genera-tiongroups.

Oneusefuldefinitionof“diasporas”isprovidedbytheUKHouseofCommons(SixthReportofSession2003-4,Volume1):International migrants who, although dispersed from their homelands, remain in some way part of their community of ori-gin.Thisdefinitioncapturesthefollowingpoints:individualsaredispersed,possiblyacrossseveralcountries,buttheymaintainaninterestandanaffiliationtotheirhomecountry,either“real”or“imagined”.

Defining“diasporas”raisestangibleissuesoftime,placeofbirthandcitizenship,aswellassubtlequestionsofidentityandbelonging.

Time:Whendoesa“migrant”ceasetobeoneandbecomepartofthe“diaspora”?Giventheincreaseincircularmigrationitisdifficulttolimittodaythenotionofdi-asporastothosewhoaresettled“forever”inacountryotherfromwheretheywereborn.Themodernnotionof“diasporas”haslostitsdimensionofirreversibilityandofexile.Migrantsgotoworkabroad,sometimesunderspecificgovernmentschemes,

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decidetostaylonger,toreturnandtoleaveagain.Itappearsthatcountriessupportingtemporarylabourmigrationarealsoconcernedwithdiasporacontributions,suchasthePhilippines,Bangladesh,Ukraine,Kenya,EthiopiaorUganda.

Place of birth:Secondandthird-generationmigrantsborntoimmigrantparents

abroadcanhaveastrongerfeelingofbelongingtothediasporasthanfirstgenerationsandretain some form of commitment to, and/or interest in, the country of origin of their parents.20Thusplaceofbirthdoesnotitselfdefinebelongingtoadiaspora.

Citizenship:Manynationalsacquiredthecitizenshipoftheirhostcountry.Theircontributionsthereforewouldnotbeincludedin“migrantworkers’”remittanceflows,forinstance,whereastheymaywellbeinterestedininvestingindifferentwaysintheirhomecountry.Thus,wedonotqualifydiasporasaccordingtotheircitizenship.

Identity and belonging: Butler’sdefinition21ofdiasporas(2001)drawsattentiontotheintangibledimensionoftheterm.Beingpartofadiasporaimpliesasenseofidentificationwithagroup,orthefeelingofbelongingtoacertainidentity.Familiesplayaroleinsupportingorrejectingthisidentification,asdolegalnorms(citizenshipforsecondgenerations),educationalprogrammesandthepossibilitytotravel.Min-istriesforexpatriates,aswellasconsulatesandembassiesarebeginningtopaymoreattentiontothe“feelingofbelonging”andtothenon-materialdimensionofengagingwithdiasporas.However,ifsymbolicinclusionmatters,itneedstobetranslatedintoactualinclusion (legislativeandinstitutionalrealities).

diaspora definitions and policy implications

Thedefinitionofdiasporaswillhaveadirectimpactontheclassification,regis-trationandmeasurementofdiasporapopulation,aswellasonthepolicyfocus.Theincorporationofverydifferentgroupsinacommonidentityaddressedas“diasporas”mayleadtoadilutionoftheconcept,inparticularifshort-termmigrantsarealsoincluded in thediasporadefinition.Thispaper thereforehighlights thecontextualdimensionofthediasporanotionthatcallsforflexibledefinitionsthattakeintoac-countbothconcrete(citizenship,lengthofstay,rights)andintangiblematters(feelingofidentity,perceptions,trust).

India introduced a key distinction between Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) andPeople of Indian Origin(PIOs).TheNRIstatusisforIndian citizens holding an In-dian passport and residing abroad for an indefinite period, whether for employment, business, vocation or any other purpose,while thePIO status designates foreign citizens of Indian origin or descent,includingsecondandsubsequentgenerations.

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TheIndianclassificationdemonstrateswellthat“diasporas”canbeawiderconceptthan“migrants”whenitincorporatesbothforeign-bornpeopleandexpatriateslivingabroad.Bydefiningtwospecificdiasporacategories,Indiafacilitatestherelationsandcontributionsofdiasporaswithverydifferentbackgrounds.

TheAfricanUnionconvenedanexpertmeetingformemberstatesinApril2005to prepare a definition of the “African Diaspora”. The adopted definition is:The African Diaspora consists of peoples of African origin living outside the continent, irrespective of their citizenship and nationality, and who are willing to contribute to the development of the continent and the building of the African Union.Thisbroaddefinitioncallsattentiontoanumberofsignificantpolicypoints:acontinentalinsteadofnationalbelonging(i.e.anon-nationaldiasporadefinition)andhighlysymbolicandpoliticalfacets.Voluntarilybelongingtothe“AfricanDiaspora”isintrinsicallyrelatedtothewillingnesstocontributetothedevelopmentandsupportoftheAfric-anUnion.Thisdefinitionthereforerelatesvoluntarycontributionstobelongingtoacollectiveentity.

Theterm“diaspora(s)”conveysacollectivedimension:diasporasasacommunity,agrouporevenasanorganizednetworkandassociationsharingcommoninterests.However, diasporas are made up of individuals with different personal histories,strategies, expectations and potentials. Recognizing the collective and individualdimension of diasporas directly affects policy development: some measures areintendedforgroups,suchassupportingscientificdiasporanetworksorchannellingcollectivefundsintocommunityprojects,whileothersbenefitindividuals,suchaslowering transfercosts, facilitatingscholarships,simplifyingcitizenshiprulesandofferingtaxbreaks.

Diasporashavetobeproperlydefinedanddeterminedtoyieldaccuratequantita-tiveandqualitativedata.

data collection on diasporas

Reliabledataandinformationareessentialforgovernmentstoengagediasporasinpracticalprogrammesfordevelopment.

Themosteffectivewaytocollectdataondiasporasistocombinedomesticandexternalresources,aswellasdatafromthesendingandthereceivingcountry.Thedomesticresourcesareconsulates,ministriesofforeignaffairs,educationandjustice,thenationalstatisticsoffices,andpopulationregistersandcensusesandemploymentagenciescanalsoprovidedata.Externalresourcesincludestatisticsdivisionsofin-

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ternationalorganizationsandinternationalcensusbureaux.Sendingcountrieskeeprecordsofexitdatathatcanbecomparedwiththeentrydatainreceivingcountriesandcompilationsofforeign-bornstatistics.

Dataarealsoavailablefromanumberofnon-governmentaldiasporaorganizations,suchasAFFORDwhichhasundertakenaprofilingexerciseonfirst andsecond-generationdiasporas.TheOrganisationforEconomicCo-operationandDevelopment(OECD)hascreatedadatabase(2004)aimingtooffercomparabledataonforeign-bornpopulations,covering227countriesoforiginand29receivingcountrieswithintheOECDarea.Thedatabasealsodifferentiatesbetweenforeign-bornandnon-citizens.Thisdatabaseisofgreatinteresttosendingcountriestoimprovetheirknowledgeontheirownexpatriatesabroad.ThelargestnumbersofexpatriatesintheOECDareaarefromTurkey,centralandeasternEurope,andmigrantsfromNorthAfricaareconcentratedinFrance,SpainandtheNetherlands,withSpainhostingover740,000expatriatesfromLatinAmerica.

Fivemainlevelsofusefuldataondiasporascanbeidentified:

a) Individual data

Inordertoregisterthemembersofdiasporasabroaditisfirstofallnecessarytodefinethetargetpopulation.Thisraises majorissues,suchascitizenshipandresidencedefinitions,aswellaspracticalregistrationproblems.Dataondiasporasinvolves,amongothers,demography,location,countryofdestination,gender,age,qualifica-tion,occupation,lengthofstay.

Thesourcesofinformationconcerningthesizeofthediasporascanbeverydiverse.Censusescanmeasurestocksofresidentsabroadthroughcensusesinthehomecountry(measuringresidentstemporarilyoverseas)andmorerarelycensusesabroad,suchasundertakenbyChilein2003.Consularregisters,suchasthosekeptbyColombiaofferinformationonexpatriates.Identificationcardsdeliveredathomeforexpatriatesorabroadarealsoausefuldatasource,suchasinthecaseofIndia(PIOandNRI,cf.supra.)andMexico(Matricula ConsularincollaborationwiththeUnitedStates).Othersourcescanbedatabases,suchastheFilipinoOverseasInformationSystemrelatedtotheCommissiononFilipinosOverseasandStatisticsandtotheNationalRegistryofOverseasAbsenteeVoters.Anumberofdevelopedcountrieskeepspecialdatabasesoftheircitizensabroad.Forinstance,theDatabaseofItaliansAbroad,wherecitizensstayingabroadformorethan12monthsregisterwithconsulatesabroadandtheinformationistransmittedtoonesinglenationaldatabase.Otherindicationsareobtainablethroughvoterevidenceandthenumberofvotersabroad,whencountriesdoallowvotingoutsidethehomecountry.

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Otherdatasourcescanyieldindicationsonflowsofnationalstoforeigncountries,inparticularentrancedatafromreceivingcountries,whileexitdatafromhomecountriesarelessreliableandnotsystematicallygathered.Hugo(2004)alsoproposesinnova-tivewaystocollectdataondiasporas,suchasmeasuringthenumberofInternethitsfromforeignnationalson,forinstance,theAustralianFootballLeaguewebsite,thatmightwellyieldusefulindicationsofdiasporas’geographicalconcentration.

BOX 2

The Integrated Migration Information System, IMIS,22 is a capacity-build-ingprojectfundedbytheItaliangovernmentcarriedoutinpartnershipwiththeEgyptianMinistryofManpowerandEmigrationwhichofferspracticalsolutionsinsomekeyareasofthelabourmigrationprocess.Amongothers,thesystemaimstofacilitateselectivelabourmigrationprogrammesforbothsendingandreceiv-ingcountries,andtoattractmigrantremittancesandmigrantinvestmentstothehomecountry.IMISalsoofferspsychographicdata,thatis,migrants’viewsandsuggestionsconcerningEgyptingeneral,aswellascurrenteconomicandsocialdevelopmentpolicies,prospectsforpotentialinvestments,currenttiesandmajorsourcesofinformation.Theimplementationofthisprojectin2002demonstratedthattoworktowardsmakingsuchatoolvaluableandefficient,capacitybuilding,fullownershipandsynergieswithotherpartiesinvolvedinmigrationdynamicsshouldbeencouraged.

b) Collective data

Thistypeofdataincludesstatisticsonavarietyofassociations,networks,com-munityorganizations,clubsandsocieties,includingnon-profit,religious,political,humanrights,educational,professional, scientific.ElSalvadorhas registered400associationsabroadinadatabase,whichiscombinedwithadatabaseoflocalinstitu-tionsinElSalvadorinterestedindiasporas.Collectivedataofferagoodinsightintotheleveloforganizationofdiasporasandtheirprioritiesforaction.Thisinformationismostusefultoidentifypartnersforcollaborationamongdiasporas.

c) Transnational flows

Oneofthemajorpolicyinterestsindiasporasisdrivenbythetransnationallinkscreatedandfacilitatedbysuchexpatriatepopulationsbetweentheirhomeandhostcountries.Accurateinformationiskeytoinformpolicymakerswillingtocollabo-ratewithdiasporasonexistingflowsofgoodsandfundsandtodefineprioritiesforaction.

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Remittances,definedastransfersofprivatefundsfromexpatriatesabroadtotheirhomecountry,areanexampleofsuchtransnationalflowsthatattractsignificantpolicyattention today.Althoughan importantnumberof initiatives aim tomeasure andanalysetheseflows,theyarelimitedbytheimportantvolumeofinformaltransfersthatescapestatisticalmeasurement.

Lessattentionisdevotedtoothertypesoftransfersandtransnationalflows,andstatisticsarethereforestillmissingontradeandforeigndirectinvestmentsdrivenbydiasporas.Tomakethesefiguresavailable,businessandtradereportingshouldbeadaptedinordertoregistertheproportionofdiasporacontributions.

d) Qualitative data

Qualitativedataareimportantforthedesignandimplementationofpoliciestarget-ingdiasporas.Informationonstocksandflowsisinsufficientinrespectofpoliciesconcerningreturns.Thedecisiontoreturn,beittemporaryorpermanent,willdependonanumberoffactorsthatcanbeevaluatedthroughsurveyingdiasporagroupsandanalysingtheirpersonalstrategies.Surveysonspecificdiasporas23collectspecificinformationthroughquestionnairesandface-to-faceinterviews.Improvedaccesstoinformationoncircularandtemporarymigrationcanalsoproviderelevantguidancetoinvolvingdiasporasfordevelopmentpurposes.Longitudinalstudiesareneededforthelong-termmonitoringofdiasporasandtounderstandtheevolutionoftheirinterests,attitudesandstrategies.

Knowingtherootcausesofmigrationandthehistoryofmigrationflowsthatledtotheformationofdiasporasareimportanttounderstandthestatusandstrategiesofdiasporas,andthedevelopmentofappropriatepolicies.Forinstance,Arabmigration,inparticularMoroccanmigrationtoEurope,hasundergonemajorchanges(IOM-LAS,2003)duringthelast20years.Thenumberofpeopleheadingenterprisesandinleadingprofessionshasincreasedleadingtonewareasofexchangebetweencountriesoforiginanddestination.Thistypeofinformationcannotbeobtainednorassessedthroughthemerecountingofexpatriates.

e) Gender-differentiated data

Gender-disaggregateddataareimportanttobettermeasureandanalysetheimpactofmigrationondevelopment,andtodesignpoliciesthatcorrespondtodiasporas’expectationsandneeds.Gendermaybedefinedastheinstitutionalizedanddynamicrelationbetweenmenandwomen,asociallyconstructedrealityatboththeindividualandcollectivelevel.Maleandfemalemigrantsfacedifferentopportunitiesandvulner-abilitiesateachstageofthemigrationprocessandreapdifferentreturnsfrommigration

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intermsofincomeandtheacquisitionofskills.TheInter-AmericanDevelopmentBank(IADB,2002)showsthatwomeninLatinAmericaarebetteratreimbursingmicrocreditsandinvestagreatershareoftheirearningsinhealthandeducation.Di-asporainitiativesandnetworkscanalsobegenderspecific.Forinstance,inFrancethereweremorethan1,000OSIM(Organisations de solidarité internationale issues de l’immigration)in2000,ofwhichover200wereAfricanwomenassociations.24

ThestudybyRefugeeActionandIOMonnationalsfromtheSomaliregioninBritain25found,forinstance,thatasregardsreturnopportunitiesmostmenwerein-terestedinemploymentandfinances,whereaswomenwereinterestedinhealthprovi-sionandeducationforchildren.Programmesaimedspecificallyatmenandwomenindiasporascanthereforebedesignedtoaddressthemainareasofconcernofmenandwomenandsupporttheirengagementinjobandenterprisecreation,healthandeducationprovisions.

policy implications of data collection

Theavailabilityofdataoftenreflectsthelevelanddegreeofpolicyinterestandthequalityofdatacollectionmechanisms.Therefore,adocumentedincreaseofthegrowthofdiasporasmayreflectimprovedreportingmeasuresandskills,ratherthananactualincreaseassuch.

Amajorbarriertodatacollectionondiasporasisthereluctanceofdiasporapopula-tionsthemselvestoregisterwithhomecountryconsulates,andtorespondtosurveysandgovernmentalinquiries.However,bylinkingtheproceduretoregistertoservicesandthedefenceofmigrantrightstotheidentificationofdiasporas,andensuringim-provedparticipationofsuchcommunitiesinregistrationexercises,theavailabilityandreliabilityofdataondiasporaswouldalsobegreatlyimproved.

Asecondmajorchallenge todatacompilationondiasporas is thedifficulty toquantifydiasporamembers,assomemigrantswillhaveacquiredcitizenshipswhileothershavenot,somewillremainundocumentedorlosetheirtieswiththeirhomeland.Somehomecountrieswillincludesecond-generationmigrantsintheirdiasporas,somehostcountrieswillconsideronlytheforeignbornasdiasporas.Furthermore,forsomecountriestheircommunitiesabroadaretoowidelydispersedtobeabletocollectdata.

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BOX 3

FeasiBility study On a system FOr the registratiOn OF alBanian emigrants (2005)

nOlan, nOrtOn italia FOr iOm alBania

Aspartof theAlbanianMigrationNationalStrategyImplementationPlan,afeasibilitystudyonasystemtoregisterAlbaniandiasporaswasconducted.Thisexerciseincludesanelectronicshort-termregistrationactivityundertheauspicesoftheCivilStatusDataofAlbanianresidentsabroadandmaintainedbytheLo-calCivilStatusOffice.Theregistrationprocessisconductedthroughtheconsularofficesandsupportedbyaninformationsystem,whilealsoinvolvingasignificantnumberofotheractors:acentralunittocoordinatetheperipheralregistrationcon-ductedbyconsulates,civilstatusmunicipalities,theMinistryofPublicOrderandotherinstitutions,suchastheStatisticalOfficeortheMinistryofLabour.ThefirststepintheregistrationprocessoccurswhenanAlbaniancitizencomesforthefirsttimetotheconsularoffice.Twotypesofdataarecollected:the“CivilStatusdata”andthe“Diasporadata”(demographic,professional,educational).Thiscasestudydemonstrates the importanceofsharingdatasourcesbetween the receivingandsendingcountries.TheinformationgatheredistransferredtoAlbaniaelectronically,andstaffaretrainedforthispurposeaswellastoinformmigrantsoftheaimsoftheregistrationexercise.

Forsomecountries,theirinterestintheirexpatriatecommunitiesabroadincreaseswiththesizeofsuchcommunities.Somecountrieshavebeenawareoftheirdiasporasforalongtime,forinstanceItaly,whoseexpatriatepopulationisestimatedatover4million,orIsrael,LebanonorArmenia.Theinterestofothercountriesismorere-cent,butisrapidlygrowing.ForinstanceIndia,whoseexpatriatepopulationstandsatover20millionworldwide,Ethiopia(1.5millionexpatriates),Eritrea(aquarterofitspopulationoutsidethecountry),Syria(whoseexpatriatesnearlyequalitsresidentpopulation)Egypt(3millionworkersintheGulfcountries)orBangladesh(1millionexpatriatessettledabroadand3.8milliontemporarylabourmigrants).Forstilloth-ers,therealizationoftheexistenceoftheirdiasporasisjustbeginningandisoftenlinkedtopoliticalandeconomicconditionsandchangesinmigrationtrends,suchascharacterizedintheex-Sovietcountries.

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iii. iNCOrpOrATiNg diASpOrA CONTriBuTiONS iNTO dEvElOpmENT STrATEgiES

Developmentcanbedefinedinabroadsenseofsustainableeconomicgrowth,povertyreduction,socialadvancement,humanempowermentandsocio-economicequity.Individualorcollectiveinitiativeswithinadiasporiccommunitycancontrib-utetooneormoreofthesegoals.However, thesentimentalattachmentdiasporasmayharbourfortheircountriesofbirthmaynotautomaticallyengendermutuallybeneficialoutcomes.26Forthistooccur,appropriateandtimelypoliciesneedtobeinplacetorecognizeandharnessthepotentialcontributionsbyandbeneficialinterac-tionwithdiasporasinsupportofdevelopmentandgrowthinboththeirhomeandhostcountries.

Prior to developing a policy aimed at linking diasporas into the developmentprocessandengaginginactivitieswithexpatriatesortheirassociations,policymakersshouldhaveaclearideaoftheirowndevelopmentneedsandgapstobebridgedandthepotentialcontributionsdiasporascouldmaketoachievethesegoals,aswellasofthediasporas’owndevelopmentagendaandobjectives.Suchconsiderationsmustbeaccommodatedwithinabroadmigratorycontextandgivedueconsiderationtobothhomeandhostcountryperspectives.Seenfromthatperspective,diasporadevelop-mentpoliciesareatthecrossroadsofhomeandhostcountryinterests.

home country strategies

Therearesomemajorpolicymotivationswhichsupporttheinvolvementofdi-asporasintheirhomecountries’developmentstrategies.Forinstance,

Engaging diasporas in the development process can limit the costs of emigration and mitigate brain drain

Emigrationcanrepresentaconsiderablecostforhomecountries,whilethereisnoconclusiveevidenceofpositiveeffectsofemigrationon local labourmarkets.Accordingtoeconomictheory,departuresshouldeaseunemploymentinthelocalmarkets,butthisisnotgenerallythecase,astheremayberigiditiesinthelabourmarket,theinabilityorunwillingnessoflocalworkerstolearnnewandneededskillsortoadjusttonewworkingmethods,ortomovetonewregions.AttheThirdUNCoordinationMeetingonInternationalMigration,Lucas(2004)presentednewfindingsontheemigrationeffectsonthelabourmarketinlow-andmiddle-incomecountriesoforigin.Insomecountriesthedepartureofpartofthelocalworkforceopensop-portunitiesforotherswithoutnoticeablequalitydeclineintheworkforce,thisisthe

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caseinBangladesh,India,IndonesiaorSriLanka,butnotfortheAfricancontinent.Emigrationcanalsoreducelabourdemandandcauseunemployment.Tomitigateanyoftheseadverseeffects,homecountriestrytolookforinnovativesolutionstotapintothedevelopmentpotentialoftheirexpatriatecommunitiesabroad.

There is evidence that economically more advanced countries have benefitedmorefromthetransfersmadebytheirdiasporas,forinstanceIsraelorSouthKorea.Toinvolvediasporascouldcertainlymitigatethecostofemigrationforthehomecountries,buttheseofteneitherdonotuseorlackthecapacitytousethispotential.Ascountriesoforigindostandtoloseadynamicpopulationthroughemigration,inadditiontothereturnoninvestmentsmadeineducation,itremainsdifficulttoprovethatdiasporas,inspiteofrepresentingagenuinedevelopmentpotential,couldactuallycompensatethelossincurred.Encouragingemigrationwiththeobjectiveofbenefit-ingfromdiasporareturnsmight,therefore,beaverycostlystrategyforthesendingcountryinthelongterm.

Emigrants improve their skills abroad which, on their return, should benefit the home countries

Itisdifficulttofindconclusiveevidencefortheassumptionthatmigrantsreturningfromabroadhavegenerallyimprovedtheirskills.Itisalsoverydifficulttodeterminewhetherreturneesareamongthemostsuccessfulmigrantsabroador,onthecontrary,thosewhofailedto“makeit”abroad.TheUKHouseofCommonscitestwoOxfamexamplesofTurkishandThaiworkerswhoreturnedwithouthavingacquiredusefulnewskills.

A2004study27investigatedtheskillsandexpertiseofZimbabweanslivingintheUKandinSouthAfricatoascertaintheirinterestinparticipationindevelopment-relatedactivities.Almost25percentofZimbabweanemigrantsweretraineddoctorsandnurses,and70to90percentofallZimbabweanuniversitygraduatesworkedoutsidetheircountryoforigin.Amajorfindingofthestudyisevidenceofdeskillingamongthesurveyedprofessionals.Deskillingoccurredbecauseofobstaclessuchasthedifficultytoacquirelegalstatus,tohaveacademicqualificationsrecognizedandtomasterthelanguageofthereceivingcountry.Thesefindingscontradictthegeneralideaofbraincirculationthatbenefitsthesendingcountrieswhentheirownnationalsreturnafterasuccessfulprofessionalexperienceabroad.ThestudyalsoshowedthatZimbabweansinSouthAfricabenefiteddifferentlyfrommigrationintermsofpro-fessionalachievementscomparedwithZimbabweansintheUK,whoseexperiencehadbeenmoresuccessful.Thisconfirmsthatanumberoflegal,socialandeconomicfactorsinthehostcountryinfluencethepotentialofdiasporastotransferknowledgetothehomecountry.

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ThesurveyontheprofessionalcapacityofnationalsfromSomaliregionsinBrit-ain28foundthatthelevelsatwhichtheywereemployedinBritainwerebelowthosetheyhadoccupiedbeforecomingtoworkinBritain.Thisresultiscorrelatedtotheknowledgeofthelanguageandtohavingasecureimmigrationstatus.Thelengthofstaycanalsoimpacttheacquisitionofskillsandqualifications.Consequently,policiesfavouringtheacquisitionofalegalstatusandnewskillsinthehostcountrycanalsobebeneficialtohomecountries.However,itisimpossibletogeneralizeondiasporasimprovingtheirskillsabroadwhichinreturnwouldbenefitthehomecountriesandonlyin-depthsurveysofparticulargroupscanaccuratelyillustratethisprocess.

Engaging diasporas might have a beneficial trickle-down effect for home countries

Amajorinterestdrivingdiasporasfordevelopmentstudiesistheperceivedimport-anceoftheimpactoftransnationalpopulationsinthedevelopmentprocess.Orozco(2003) summarizes the economic involvement of diasporas under the “Five Ts”:“tourism,transportation,telecommunications,trade,andtransmissionofmonetaryremittances”.Althoughstudiescanquantifythelevelofremittancesandinvestments,itismoredifficulttoaccuratelyevaluatetheculturalandhumanimpactofexpatri-atepopulationsontheirhomeandhostcountries:changingrolemodels,influencinggenderroles,alteringdemographicandfamilialbehavioursandperceptionsofwhatasuccessfullifeshouldbe.

Innovativepracticestargetingdiasporascould,forinstance,favourforeigndirectinvestmentpolicyingeneralbyeliminatingbureaucraticobstacles,securingtransac-tions,improvingbusinessenvironmentsandopeningnewwindowsofopportunities.Inthissense,theIndianInvestmentCentretargetsbothdiasporasabroadaswellasIndianswishingtosetupprojectsabroad.

Countriesoforiginwishingtomakethemostoftheirdiasporasfaceanumberofchallenges:

Integrating diaspora inputs into endogenous growth projects that represent real added value for the national economy

As reported by the Asian Development Bank (2004) 19 of the top 20 Indiansoftware businesses were founded or managed by professionals from the Indiandiaspora.Thesoftwareindustryhascreated400,000newjobsinIndiaandexportedoverUS$6billionworthofgoodsandserviceson2002.Thisisasuccessfulexampleofthecontributionsmadebydiasporas.SouthKoreahasalsobenefitedfromtheef-fectiveintegrationofdiasporainflowsintothelocaleconomicgrowthmechanisms.

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Furtherscrutinyandanalysisofthesecasestudiescouldofferinsightsintothemostappropriate and effectivemechanismswithwhich to support diasporas to sustainhome-basedindustries.

Including diasporas in existing development strategies

CountrystrategiesforBenin,BurkinaFaso,Mauritania,CapeVerde,MadagascarandMaliweredevelopedincooperationwithIOMandsharedwithhomegovern-mentsanddonors, inordertomatchthedevelopmentconcernsofthesecountrieswithavailableresourcesfromthediasporas.InitsSustainableDevelopmentPovertyReductionStrategyAnnualProgressReport(2002-2003)Ethiopiaincludedthegov-ernmentcommitmenttoexpandprivatesectoractivitiesbyengagingthemembersoftheEthiopiandiasporas.GhanainitiatedaPovertyReductionSchemepromotingSMEsintheagro-industrythatexplicitlyrecognizesdiasporasasasourceofmobiliz-ingfundstofinancetheanti-povertystrategy.

Tosumup,ifevidenceshowsthatdiasporaresourcescanbringbenefitstothesendingcountry,itwouldbemistakentoperceivethemasapanaceaforallexistingdifficultiesbesettingthedomesticeconomy.Indeed,benefitsasmaybederivedfromdiasporainvolvementshouldcomplementappropriatepoliciesinthehomecountry.

host country strategies

Themotiveshostcountriesmayhavetoworktogetherwithexpatriatecommunitieswithintheirbordersmaybesummarizedasfollows:

Diasporas may bridge the transnational space and facilitate transnational cooperation

Somehostcountriesconsultdiasporaorganizationsconcerning thedesignandimplementationoftheirhomecountrydevelopmentplans.Mostoftheseinitiativesarerecentanddrivenbytheaimtorationalizedevelopmentpolicies.IntheUK,forinstance,theInternationalDevelopmentCommittee,appointedbytheHouseofCom-mons,launchedaninquiryinJuly2003andheldtenevidencesessions,thelastoneinvolvingmembersoftheSierraLeonediaspora.Inaddition,theUKDepartmentforInternationalDevelopment(DFID)producedtheIndianCountryAssistancePlaninconsultationwiththeIndiandiasporacommunityandalsocollaborateswithdiverseotherdiasporainitiatives,suchastheBlackandMinorityOrganizationandConnec-tionforDevelopmentNetwork.TheUKalsoinvolvedtheBangladeshidiasporainthedesignoftheBangladeshCountryAssistancePlan.

FrancesetupafederationofNGOstofacilitateaccesstofundingforprojectsfor

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theircommunitiesoforigin.BilateralcollaborationinvolvingdiasporasexistswithSenegal, Benin, Congo and Sierra Leone. In 2002-04 France funded 2.6 millioneurostomobilizeMaliansinFrancetocontributetoeducationandsmallbusinessesinMali.

TheNetherlandsinvolvesdiasporaassociationsthroughtheNationalEthnicMi-noritiesConsultativeCommittee(LOM)inaccordancewiththePolicyMemorandumoftheHouseofRepresentatives(2003).Developmentagenciesarealsoinstrumentalintakingdueaccountofthecontributionsdiasporaareabletomaketowardshome-coun-trydevelopment.DFIDandtheSwedishInternationalDevelopmentAgency(SIDA)financediaspora-leddevelopmenteventsandprojects,supportingentrepreneurshipandsmallbusinesscreation.29USAIDworkswithEthiopian-bornIsraelisskilledinhealthandeducationtohelpaddressAIDSinEthiopia.ThedevelopmentagenciesofDenmark,Sweden,Finland,Norway,NewZealandandJapansupportactivitiesengaging diasporas in specific professional sectors or regions. Australia financesdevelopmentprogrammeswithaspecificinterestinremittanceflowstoIndonesiaandPapuaNewGuinea.

Co-development strategies

Themobilizationofdiasporasispartoftheco-developmentapproachfavouredbyanumberofgovernmentsandinitiatedbytheFrenchgovernmentin2000throughconventionswithSenegal,Mali,Moroccoand theComoroswith theobjective toorganizethemobilityoftemporarymigrants,regulatemovementsandpromotetheinvolvementofdiasporasfor thebenefitof theirhomecountrydevelopment.TheFrenchgovernmentco-financeslocalcommunityprojectswhileatleast15percentoftheprojectcostiscoveredbymigrantassociations.ItalyandSenegallaunchedtheCommodityAidProgramme,abilateralprogrammeofferingcreditfacilitiesforsmall-andmedium-sizedenterprisesandintendedtopromotetheengagementoftheSenegalesediasporasinthelocalprivatesectordevelopment.30

AccordingtotheParliamentaryAssemblyoftheCouncilofEurope(PACE),31“theinteractionbetweenmigrationanddevelopmentcouldbemostsuccessfullyachievedthroughco-developmentpolicies”andthat“co-developmentpoliciesaimedatinvol-vingmigrantsasactorsofdevelopmentwhostrengthencooperationbetweenhomeandhostsocietiesshouldbeactivelypromotedattheEuropeanlevel”.

In1997theco-developmentpolicywasanalysedinareporttotheFrenchMinistryofForeignAffairs(NairSami,1997).Theauthoridentifiedco-developmentpolicyasaninnovativeapproachaimedatachievingcommonobjectivesbetweenthehomeandhostcountry.Thereportstatesthatco-developmentdidnotaimtoreturnmigrants(but

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itdoesemphasizethatlegalstatusinthehostcountryisasine qua noncondition)nordiditfavournewmigrationflows,butrathersoughttocreatethesocialconditionsinhomecountriesthatareabletoalleviatemigrationpressuresandchangethemental-itiesofpotentialmigrantstolookforopportunitiesathomeratherthanseekingthemabroad.Theco-developmentpolicyrequiresfurtherassessment,inparticularasitissometimesperceivedaspromotingrestrictivemigrationobjectives.Nevertheless,itdoesrepresentaformalapproachaimedatcombininghomeandhostcountryinterests,whilealsoacknowledgingmigrantsaskeyelementsinthisprocess.

diasporas at the crossroads of interests between home and host countries

Homeandhostcountries’interestsintermingleconcerningdiasporas:thestatusofmigrantsanddiasporasinthehostcountrydirectlyaffectstheirstrategiestowardshomecountries.Diasporacontributionsareafunctionofpersonalstrategiestowardsthehomecountryaswellastothelegal,political,socialandeconomicstatusoftheindividualinthehostcountry.32Moreover,thedevelopmentpotentialofdiasporasdependsontheeconomicrankingof thehostcountryasahigh-,middle-or low-incomecountry.Studiesoftenconcentrateonhigh-incomehostcountrieseventhoughonlyaquarterofmigrantflowsfromnon-OECDaredirectedtoOECDcountries.TheUKHouseofCommons(2003-04)documentarguesthatmigrantsinmanyofthe less-developed countries face unfavourable conditions which also affect theirdevelopmentpotentialeitherthereorintheirhomecountries.

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iv. pArTNEriNg wiTh rElEvANT diASpOrAS

Diasporaindividualsanddiaspora-organizedentitiesareextremelyvaried.Deci-sionmakerswilling tocollaboratewithdiasporas inhomeandhostcountriesarefacedwith amultitudeof interlocutorswhooften representdiverse interests.Forhomecountrypoliciesengagingdiasporasfordevelopmenttoberealisticandeffect-ive,thehomecountry’sdevelopmentstrategyandtheparticularchoiceofdiasporamemberswillingtoengagethemselveseitherformotivesofphilanthropyorprofit,inparticulardevelopmentactivitiesintheirhomecountries,willneedtobecompatibleandmutuallysupportive.

Typology of diaspora initiatives

Abroad rangeofmotivations andexpectations can lead to the constitutionofdiasporaorganizations, initiativesnetworks andassociations.Different reasons tomigratecreatedifferenttypesofdiasporiclinkageswithhomecountriesandleadtotheformationofdifferenttypesofdiasporanetworks(Barré,2003).Thefollowingtableofferssomeexamplesofdifferentdiasporainitiativesgearedtowardsdevelop-mentandprovideslinkstotheirwebsites.

BOX 4

Businessnetworks

TheLebaneseBusinessNetworklinksLebaneseentrepre-neursabroadandbusinessopportunitiesinLebanon.ArmeniaHighTechCouncilandSiliconArmeniarelateAr-meniandiasporasintheUStohomecountryprojects.Somediasporanetworkshaveplayedacentralroleinpavingthewaytoattractforeigninvestors.TheIndusEntrepreneurisoneofthemostpowerfulnetworks,andhasbuiltupconfi-denceofoverseasinvestorssuchasHewlettPackardtran-scendingtheactualIndiandiasporas.

Chambersofcommerce

TheCaribbeanAmericanChamberofCommerceandIndus-try,ortheFederationofIndianChambersofCommerce33embeddiasporas’activitiesdirectlyinthebusinesscommuni-ty.Formanyothercountries,diasporasfacilitatebusinessex-changeswiththesupportofthechambersofcommerce,suchas,USA-Bangladesh,UK-Bulgaria.TheNetworkofColom-bianChambersofCommerceandSierraLeoneanDiasporasCouncilactuallyhaverepresentativesoftheirdiasporasinthechambersofcommerceofthehostcountry.

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Professionalnetworks

Theserepresenttheinterestsofdevelopedanddevelopingcountries.AdvanceAustralianProfessionalsinAmerica34isanetworkfundedbyAustralianbusinessesinAmerica.TheGlobalKoreannetwork35aimstopromotetheformationandexpansionofdecentralizedcultural,social,andeconomicnetworksamongKoreancommunitiesoverseas.Theworld-wideIndianNetwork36andtheReverseBrainDrainProjectThailand37targetalltypesofskills,whereastheHungarianMedicalAssociationofAmerica38focusesonmedicalprofes-sionals.TheEthiopianNorthAmericanHealthProfession-alsAssociation(ENAHPA)isapartnerfortheIOMprojectMIDAinEthiopia.

Scientificnetworks

Thesystematicsearchonthewebundertakenfortheprojectonscientificdiasporas39identifiedmorethan200networkshavingawebportal,amongwhich171wereselectedtopreparethereportandonly79wereconsideredasareli-ablesource.SomeexamplesincludeAIVF–Association des informaticiens vietnamiens de FranceandTheChineseAssociationforScienceandTechnology(CAST-USA),whichwasestablishedin1992with500membersandcountstoday3,000,andtheAfricanScientificNetwork.40Scientificnetworksareoftenbasedonuniversitynetworks:Red de Estudiantes Argentinos en los Estados Unidos,41Red Aca-demica Uruguaya,42theEthiopianKnowledgeandTechno-logyTransferSociety(EKKTS)isapartnerforIOMMIDAinEthiopia.ALAS(LatinAmericanScientificAssociation)andACAL(Academia de Ciencias de America Latina)havebeenworkingtogethersince1987toidentifytechniciansandscientistsfromtheregionandsupportedbyUNESCOandtheFrenchMinistryofForeignAffairs43from1994to2000.ECOMEDisanetworkofscientistsfoundedin1995inQuito,Ecuador,andbringstogethertheUniversitédeParisV,theInstitutPasteur,theUniversidadCentraldeQuitoandtheColombianUniversityBarranquilla.

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Skillscapacity

AfricaRecruit44isaplatformfordebatewiththeAfricandiasporaonhowtoaddvaluetocapacitybuildinginAfrica.Theyorganizeandsupportrecruitmentandcareerevents,operateanemploymentdatabase/searchengine.ABANTU45forDevelopmentisanon-governmentalassociationaimedatmobilizingresourcesandskillsamongAfricancommunitiestopromotesustainabledevelopmentinAfrica.ItalsodealswithinequalitiesbetweenmenandwomenintheUnitedKingdom.TheForum pour le développement de l’Afrique46producedanAfricanexpertdatabase.TheAfricanCapacityBuildingFoundation(ACBF)47isanindependent,capacity-buildinginstitutionlaunchedinFebruary1991.ACBFstartedtodevelopaDirectoryofAfricanDevelopmentManagementProfessionals.48FortheAfricanFoundationforDevelopment(AFFORD),49acharityintheUK,theAfricandiasporaisanimportantstakeholderinAfrica’sdevelopmentanditstrivestoinvolveAfricansinsustainableprojectsforthepromotionofdevelopmentandjobandskills.AfricanAxis50isactivealongsimilarlinesinBelgium.TheJamaicanDiasporaCan-adaFoundationaddressesitselftoJamaicanpoliceofficersinCanadatolendtheirexpertisetoJamaica.

Communityinitiatives

TheHometowninitiativessupportlocaldevelopment,micro-enterpriseandlocalcommunityprojectsinEcuador,Mexico,ParaguayandUruguay.ThePrograma de Iniciativa Ciu-dadana 3 x 1 Mexico51matchesmigrantfundswithfederal,stateandmunicipalfunds;theCatalanFundforDevelopmentCooperation(FCCD)52isanon-profitorganizationworkingmainlyinLatinAmericaandsupportsimmigrantswishingtopromotelocaldevelopmentprojectsintheirhomecountry.

Migrationanddevelopmentassociations

TheAssociation Migration Solidarité et Echanges pour le Développement(AMSED)53inFrance,MigrationandDevel-opment54andAlternativeforIndiaDevelopment55intheUK,focusonthesolidarityarisingfrommigrationdynamics.

Genderanddevelopment

InFrance,Femmes et développement en Algérie(FEDA)56andFAMAFRIQUE57specificallytargetwomenindiaspo-ras.Initiatives de Femmes Africaines de France et d’Europe(IFAFE),anassociationfoundedin1993andconstitutedinafederationin1996,bringstogether23associationswithbothintegrationandhomecountrydevelopmentobjectives.58

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Umbrellaorgani-zations

Forum des organisations de solidarité internationale issues des migrations(FORIM),59France,anationalplatformcre-atedin2002bringstogether700networks,federationsandassociationsdedicatedtobothintegrationissuesinthehomecountryanddevelopmentactivitiesforthehostcountry.TheNationalFederationofIndianAmericanAssociations(NFIA)bringstogether250organizationsintheUSandaimstounitedifferentinitiatives.TheNationalEthnicMinoritiesConsult-ativeCommittee,Netherlands,bringstogethersevenethnicminorityorganizations.

Diasporanetworking

Informationnetworksvaryfromcountrytocountryandbysector.Manylosemembersovertime,arenotregularlyandconsistentlyupdated,andoftenfailtodeliverconcreteresults.Itisunclearwhethertheyreceivegovernmentalsup-port,e.g.theGhanaAbroad60websitewhichdealswithalltypesofconcernsfrompassports,businessinvolvementbackhomeandeventheelectionofMissGhanainHolland.

Co-developmentinitiatives

Intheiraimtocontactandcollaboratewiththeexpatriatecommunitiesabroad,manydiasporaorganizationsofferanadditionaltransnationalbridgeforbothhomeandhostcoun-triesbyinvolvingexpatriatecommunitiesandmembersofthehostcountry.Forinstance,theDutch-Africandiasporasorganization,AfroNeth,bringstogetherAfricanandDutchmembers,andtheGerman-SerbianEconomicForumGermanandSerbianmembers.TheCo-operationfortheDevelop-mentofEmergingCountries(COSPE)61isanon-profitas-sociationoperatinginthefieldofinternationalcooperationinItalythatalsoinvolvesdiasporasfordevelopment.

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Finances Migrantscanearmarkaportionofthefundstheysendbackhomeforaspecificproject.OpportunityInternational,forinstance,channelsremittancesforpovertyreductionthroughpartnershipswithmicro-financeinstitutions:Metcare,Ghana,channelsremittancesintohealthcareprojects.

Someinformaltransfermechanismsareusedwhereofficialchannelsareeithernotavailable,accessibleoreschewedforpersonalreasons.TheHawalaisatraditionalmoneytransfermechanismmainlyusedinEastandSouth-eastAsiaandmuslimcountriesforanonymous,lowcost,speedyandhomelanguageservices.JeiqianforChina,PadalaforthePhilippines,Phei kwanforThailandandHundiforIndiaandBangladesharesimilarinformaltransfernetworks.

policy implications

Belowaresomebroadfeaturesandconclusionsondiasporainitiativesofpolicyinterest:

• Diasporaorganizationsserveasbridgesbetweenhomeandhostcountriesonac-countoftheirdualmembershipofdiasporasandnationalsofthehostcountryandarethusinapositiontoservetheinterestsofmembersinboththehostandthehomecountry.Forinstance,theSerbian-GermanForumisfoundedonco-membershipofGermansandSerbiansforthepromotionoftradelinks.TheIndUSEntrepreneurnetworksupportsenterprisesinIndiaandtheUSAandidentifiesventurecapitalforbusinessstart-upsandgrowth.TheGreaterSylhetDevelopmentWelfareCouncil,afederationofBangladeshicommunityorganizationsintheUK,promotestherightofBangladeshnationalstovoteinhomecountryelectionsandfightsracialdiscriminationintheUK.Theseexamplesshowthatdiaspora-ledinitiativescanbeofequalinteresttothehomeandthedestinationcountry.

• Manydiasporaorganizationsaregeographicallyconcentratedinhostcountriesandarealsoactiveincertainareasinhomecountries(cf.,e.g.hometownassoci-ationsinMexico).AmongthegovernmentswhichrespondedtotheIOMsurveyonpoliciesengagingdiasporasfordevelopment(IOM,2005),66percentcitedhometownassociationsastheirmaininterlocutors.Policiescanbuildonthis“lo-cal-to-local”dimensionofdiasporainitiatives.

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• Chambersofcommercearesignificantpartners,inparticularthosewithbilateralties,suchasthoserepresentinginterestbetween,e.g.theUSAandBangladesh,BritainandBulgaria,ortheSierraLeoneDiasporas’CouncilintheUKChamberofCommerceortheNetworkofColombianChambersofCommerce.Anumberofstudieshaveshownthatminoritypopulationsoftenengageinentrepreneurshipatahigherratethannationalaverages(OECD,2003),whichisofgreatinterestforpolicymakersinbothhostandhomecountries.Pullandpushfactorscontributetothisentrepreneurialpropensity,suchasdiscriminationinthelabourmarket,whereself-employmentoffersanescapefromunemployment.Supportiveethnicbusinessnetworks,informalfamilylaboursourcesandthefactthatthosewhomigrateareoftenamongthemostentrepreneurialpeoplecanalsoexplainthisentrepreneurialmotivation.Thereisalsoevidencethatdiasporalobbyingandadvocacyhavebeenabletofavourspecifictradeagreementsbetweenhostandhomecountries,suchasbetweensouthernEuropeanandnorthernAfricancountries.Entrepreneurshipisakeyareaforcollaborationwithalreadyexistingdiasporabusinessesandorganiza-tions.

• Scientific networks appear particularly dynamic and effective when they arerelatedtoaparticularacademicandentrepreneurialenvironment.AnexampleistheChineseAmericanAssociationforScienceandTechnology(CAST)whichmaintains professional and regional societies in important entrepreneurial andbusinessclusterssuchasSiliconValley.Networksaremoredurableandaffluentwhenrelatedtoaspecificuniversity,suchastheLebaneseInternationalNetworklinkedtotheLebaneseAmericanUniversity.Moreover,recentresearchbyBéatriceSéguininCanada(2006)showedthatgovernmentswithstrongdiasporapoliciestendtohavealargenumberofself-identifieddiasporanetworksfocusingonthetransferofknowledgebetweenthehostandthehomecountry.

• Manyinitiativesdependonvoluntaryworkandthereforereachoperationallimitsandlackcontinuity(Barré,2003).Animportantnumberofvirtualnetworksdonothaveanupdatedwebsiteanddisintegrateassoonasthefoundersmoveontootherinitiatives.Divisionswithindiasporaassociationscangrowovertimeonaccountofprivateconflictsofinterestamongtheirmembers,theircommonethnicbackgroundnotwithstanding.TheIOMreport(Sidiqqui,2005)ontheBangladeshidiasporasintheUKandUSAnoteshowethnicandreligiouscommunitiestendto,overtime,losethecommongroundwhichoriginallyunitedthem.

• Thequestionconcerningtheautonomyofdiasporaorganizationsrelativetohomeandhostgovernmentsiscomplex.Associationsrelatedtogovernmentshavetheirownadvantagesbutcanalsoleadtoindividualsrejectingtheseinitiatives.Chikezi,ExecutiveDirectorofAFFORD62recommendsthatgovernmentsshouldrather

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respecttheautonomyofnetworks,findgenuineinitiativesandenablethemtofindtheirownmeansofsecuringtheirlegitimacy.63Thenatureofthelinkwithpublicauthoritiesisnotalwaysveryclear;forinstance,theJamaicanDiasporaCanadaFoundationwasfoundedafteratwo-daydiasporaconferenceheldinJune2004inJamaicabythegovernment.However,thisdoesnotnecessarilymeanthatthefoundationcannothaveanindependentagenda.Thesupportofinternationalor-ganizations(e.g.UNESCO,WorldBank)ensurestheviabilityofsomenetworks.TheUNInformationandCommunicationTechnologiesTaskForce,forinstance,supportsexpatriateAfricanITspecialiststolaunchhigh-techbusinessesinsub-Saharan Africa. ALAS, the Scientific Latino-American Association, receivessupportfromUNESCO.

Thereisstilllittlesystematicevidenceassessingthedevelopmentimpactofdiasporaorganizations.Newland(2004)considersthatpoliciesshould“buildonsuccess”andsupportinitiativesthatalreadyexistandworkwell.Inanumberofcountries,bot-tom-upinitiativeshaveneverthelessbeenabletoraiseawareness,toinfluenceandsometimesputpressureongovernmentstopresentandpursuetheiraims.TheADB(2004)considersthattheFilipinoBrainGainNetworkhashelpedcreatecompaniesin the Philippines by providing invaluable consultancy. However, the uneasinessregardingpoliticalinvolvementofdiasporascandiscreditdiasporasasawhole.Con-sequently,inordertotranslatediasporainvolvementintopolicies,itmaybenecessarytoaddresseachcaseseparatelyinveryconcretetermstoavoidconfusingthevariousindividualdiasporainitiatives,andtodeterminewhothepartnersare,theiragenda,andthebestmeansofengagingthem.

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v. dEfiNiNg hOmE COuNTry prOgrAmmES ANd iNCENTivES CONduCivE TO diASpOrA ENgAgEmENT

fOr dEvElOpmENT

Numeroushomecountrygovernmentshavelaunchedofficialprogrammesdedica-

tedtomobilizingtheirdiasporasabroadfordevelopmentpurposes.Thesegovernmen-talprogrammestakedifferentformsbutfaceacommonchallenge:toberecognizedaslegitimatebydiasporas.Diasporainitiativeshaveusuallybeeninplacepriortothesegovernmentalprogrammesanddiasporagroupshaveoftenactedaspressuregroups,whichexplainsthereluctanceofsomediasporaindividualsororganizationstogetinvolvedincommonactivitieswiththegovernment.Buildingrealpartnershipswithdiasporasandengaginginproductivedialogueandcooperationcanbealengthyandcomplexprocess.Todoso,governmentscreatespecificinstitutionsinchargeofworkingwithdiasporas,designwebsites toreachout toexpatriatesandintroducespecificincentivestoattracttheircontributionstothehomecountry.

programmatic responses

Examplesofhomecountrydiasporaprogrammesinclude:

• Algeria:Agovernmentprogrammetargetingdiasporasstartedin2005isunderimplementation,whileaDelegateMinisterinchargeoftheNationalCommunityAbroadexistssince1996,reportingsince2002totheheadofgovernment.64

• Benin:ThefirstmeetingoftheBeninesediasporawasorganizedin1997.In2001,a“NationalPolicyPlanforBenineseAbroad”waslaunchedwithsupportatthepresidentiallevel.

• Colombia:TheColombia Nos Uneprogrammeismonitoredatthepresidentiallevelandiscomposedofdiversepolitical,economicandsocialprovisionstailoredtonationalsabroad.

• ElSalvador:Anumberoflegislativedecreeswereadoptedinordertolaunchthe“MigrantWeek”,the“ConventionforMigrantWorkers”,organizedvisitsfromSalvadorianslivingabroadandtax-freegoodsforvisitingdiasporapopulations.ThesefirstexecutivedecreesconsolidatedthefoundationsforothermeasuressuchasthenominationofaVice-MinisterforSalvadoriansAbroad65andthelaunchoftheProgrammeSalvadorenos en el exterior.Theprogrammeencompasseseightstrategicareasfordiasporapolicymaking:economicintegration,consularservices,linkagetothecivilsociety,humanrightssupport,familyreunification,remittanceschannelled to local development, communication and social andhumanitarian

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assistance.Themainobjectivesaretoidentifythediasporacommunities,buildanetworkwiththiscommunity,establishpositivecommunicationwiththedias-poras,establishanagendaforactionwiththecommunityandchangetraditionalpolicyapproachesathomeinordertoworkeffectivelyoncommunityaffairsandperspectives.

• Estonia: The Governmental Expatriates Programme is being implemented. AMigrationFoundationandaCouncilofExpatriateswerecreated.

• Morocco:WiththesupportoftheHassanIIFoundationforMoroccansLivingAbroadandIOM,anObservatoryoftheMoroccanCommunityLivingAbroad(EOMC)66wascreated,offeringanintegratedinformationsystemtostrengthenthe institutional capacities of the Moroccan government to address migrationmanagementissues.

• Tunisia:Anannualofficialprogrammewasadoptedwithpresidentialsupportfor2005-2009.67

• Sudan:Acapacity-buildinginitiativehasrecentlybeenintroducedtoraisebothawareness and competence within the institutions in charge of populationsabroad.

• Pakistan: Aprogramme including visits of expatriate Pakistani consultants onshort-termassignmentsforthepurposeoftransferringknowledgeandtechnologywaslaunchedin2005.

• Ukraine:The2010Diasporas’Programmeaimstoraiseawarenessandimprovecollaborationwithdiasporasby2010.

• Uruguay:Anationalstrategicdocumentondiasporasabroadwaspresentedatthe SouthAmericanConferenceinJune2003andledtothegovernmentalpro-grammePrograma de Vinculacion con los Uruguayos Residentes en el Exterior.Theprogrammeis run thoughamember-basedsystemandcalls forvoluntaryregistration.

• Venezuela:ThediasporaprogrammeincludesacensusofVenezuelanresidentsabroad(Censo de los Venezolanos Residentes en el Exterior,2005)andaconsoli-datedgovernmentprogrammetoimplementtheElectoralPresidentialProgramme2004-2005.

Inadditiontothespecialprogrammes,governmentsincreasinglyreachouttowardstheirdiasporasthroughtheInternetandbyorganizingspecialevents.

Internetisthemostcommontoolusedtoreachouttodiasporas.AnexampleisthegovernmentalArmenianwebsite68offering jobpostings,businesssupportandinformationonArmenia.TheMoroccanwebsite69deliversastrongpolicymessagereachingouttoexpatriates,whilethegovernmentalSyrianwebsite70offersculturalandeconomicinformation.

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Thenumberofeventsinvitingdiasporastodiscussdevelopmenthaveincreasedduringthelastfiveyears.Examplesinclude:

• Ethiopia:theAnnualEthiopianDiasporaDaywasorganizedinJanuary2005forthethirdtimesince2001.

• India:January9wasdeclaredin2003astheCelebrationDayofDiasporascom-memoratingGhandi’sreturntoIndiafromSouthAfrica.

• Mexico:theSecondConferenceinMexicoonState-DiasporaRelationswasor-ganizedinOctober2005.

• Syria:TheSyrianExpatriatesConferencewasorganizedunder thepatronageofPresidentBasharal-AssadinOctober2004andcampsforyoungpeopleandactivitiesabroadsuchastheCulturalWeekinDresden,Germany,areregularlyorganized.

• Serbia:TheeventSerbianDiasporaandHomeland,Rights,ObligationsandCol-laborationwasorganizedin2002.

institutional arrangements

Consulatesandembassiesplayakeyroleingatheringdataondiasporas,offeringservices toexpatriatesandmaintaininglinkswith theexpatriatecommunities.AnexampleofthekeyroleplayedbyconsulatesistheprogrammeMexicanCommuni-tiesLivingAbroadwhereconsulatesfacilitatethechannellingofremittancesfromtheUnitedStatestowardslocaldevelopmentprojectsinMexico.AnotherexampleisKenya,withmissionsandembassiesmandatedtobethelinkbetweenthegovern-mentand thediasporas71and topromoteachangeofattitudes towardsdiasporas,encouragingthemtogatherinassociationsandcontributetotherealizationofnationaldevelopmentgoals.

Thenumberofnationalministriesfortheirexpatriatesabroadhasincreasedinthelasttenyearswiththeaimtoserveexpatriates,offercommunicationchannelsandrespondtodiasporaconcerns.Therecentriseinthenumberofinstancesdealingwithdiasporasmirrorstheinteresthomecountrieshaveintheirdiasporas,suchasthePresidentialOfficeforMexicansAbroad,theBangladeshMinistryforExpatriateWelfareandOverseasEmployment,bothestablishedin2001;theMinistryofEx-patriatesoftheSyrianArabRepublicformedin2002,andtheStateSecretariatforRomaniansAbroad,createdin2003.

Today,countriessuchasArmenia,Azerbaijan,Benin,Brazil,BurkinaFaso,Chile,Ethiopia,Guatemala,Lithuania,Mali,Mexico,Romania,Senegal,Syria,Tunisia,

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Turkey,UruguayandPeruallhavespecialbodiesdealingwithdiasporaissuesandthelistisfarfrombeingexhaustive.

Theseinstitutionscanbeverydiversesuchas:theViceSecretaryofStateforNa-tionalsAbroadinBrazil;theCouncilforTurkishCitizensAbroad;theStateAgencyforBulgariansAbroad;theDirectorateforChileanCommunitiesAbroad;thePresi-dentialOfficeforMexicansAbroad;theStateSecretaryforRomaniansAbroad;theGeneralDirectorateforEthiopianExpatriates;theMinistryforSenegaleseAbroad;andtheSerbiaandMontenegroDirectorateforDiasporas.

Somecountriesmultiplysuchinstancesatthenationallevel.InEthiopia,forin-stance,threedifferentbodiesdealwithdiasporas:theGeneralDirectorateforEthio-pianExpatriates(MinistryofForeignAffairs);theEthiopianDiasporasCoordinatingOffice(MinistryofCapacityBuilding,)andtheDiasporasDeskintheAddisAbabaCityGovernmentInvestmentAuthority.72If thisclearlyshowspolicyinterest, thediversificationofinstitutionsalsoraisesissuesofinternalcoordination.

Anexampleofadiasporainstitutionalmandateis theMinistryoftheHaitiansLivingAbroad,taskedtosupportwithconcreteinitiativesthecollaborationwiththediasporacommunities,tofacilitatetheservicesoftheHaitianstatetothemembersofthediaspora,andtoadvocatefortheinterestsofthemembersofthediasporas.73

Theexistenceofinstitutionstargetingdiasporasdoesnotnecessarilyguaranteethatresourcesandcapacitiesdevotedtodiasporapoliciesaresufficientandsustain-able.Manyoftheleast-developedcountrieslackfinancialandhumanresourcestoofferrealservicesthroughtheirrepresentationsabroad,andnon-governmentalassoci-ationsprovidecomplementaryservicesfordiasporas.Inaddition,manyprogrammesandinstitutionsarerelativelyrecentwhichmakesitverydifficulttoassesstheirrealimpactondiasporacontributions.

incentives

Dual citizenship and voting rights

Thegrantingofdualcitizenshipisasignificantmeasureadoptedbyhomecoun-tries to formalize thebelongingof theirdiasporas to thehomecountry,both inasymbolic and concrete way. If the issue of dual citizenship bears many politicalfacetsandisdependentonboththeregulationsinthehomeandthehostcountry,

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homeandhostcountriesareawareofthenumerousimplicationsofthisprovisionondiasporacontributionstodevelopment.IOMintheInternational Legal Norms and MigrationDocument(2004)acknowledgesthatdualnationalityisincreasinglycommonandthattheattitudeofstateshaschangedfromperceivingitas“an irritant in international relation, a status to be discouraged and prohibited in order to avoid attendant issues of loyalty and diplomatic protection”, towards recognizing that“persons can maintain links to more than one state without major interstate conflicts ensuing”.Severalhomecountriesgrantdualcitizenshipwithaviewtofacilitatingdiasporacontributions,somealreadyawhileago,suchasEgyptin1983,targetinginparticularpermanentmigrantsor,morerecently,Ghanain2002,thePhilippinesin2003andBurundiin2005.Ghana,forinstance,consideredthatdualcitizenshipwouldfacilitatetheresidenceofdiasporasinthehomecountryandsupportinvest-ments.Armeniaadoptedthelawondualcitizenshipin2005inorderimprovetheimageofthecountry,strengthenthetiesof“ArmenianDiaspora”withthe“historicalMotherland”andfacilitateinvestmentflows.Aftertheadoptionofthelaw,Armeniaestimatedthatthereare5millionArmeniancitizensabroad.

In several cases, such as Australia and India, diasporas have lobbied for dualcitizenship.Withover1millionAustraliansabroad,theDepartmentforImmigra-tion,MulticulturalandIndigenousAffairscarriedoutaninquiryontheimpactofthelossofAustraliancitizenshiponacquisitionofanothercountry’scitizenship.AsaconsequenceandduetothestronglobbyingofAustraliandiasporas,theAustraliangovernmentalloweddualcitizenshipin2002.Indiagranteddualcitizenshipin2003toIndianslivinginparticularcountries,i.e.theUnitedStates,theUnitedKingdom,Australia,Canada,Finland, theNetherlandsand Italy. In thecaseofBangladesh,diasporasexpressedtheirappreciationoftheprovisionofdualcitizenshipforBang-ladeshis,thougharecentreformbytheElectionCommissionstipulatesthatinordertovotethepersonhastobepresent inthecountryduringthevoters’registration,makingitmoredifficulttovoteabroad.74

Therighttovoteabroadoffersdiasporasaccesstothehomecountry’spoliticaldecisionsandinsomecasestohavetheirspecificinterestsrepresented.Forexample,Italiansabroadhavetherighttoelectbymail12representativesintheparliamentandsixsenatorstorepresenttheinterestoftheItaliancommunityabroad.Similarly,the2millionFrenchcitizens registeredabroadelect the Assemblée des Français de l’Etranger,whichischairedbytheFrenchMinisterforForeignAffairs.75IOM’sexperienceinexternalvotingprogrammes,suchasforBosniaandHerzegovina,EastTimor,Kosovo(SerbiaandMontenegro),Afghanistanor Iraq,shows thatout-of-countryvotingallowspeopletoberepresentedincivilianandpoliticallifeathome,andthatthismechanismcontributestoindividualempowerment,thecreationofa

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bettersocio-economicenvironmentbackhomeaswellascreatinganincentivetoremaininvolved.

Facilitate free movement

Somehomegovernmentsintroducedspecialschemes,inparticulartofacilitatevisa-freemovementforpeoplewhoarenolongercitizensofthecountryoforigineitherbecausetheywereobligedtoabandontheircitizenshipinordertoacquirethecitizenshipofthehostcountry,orbecausetheyaresecond-generationmigrants.For-eignnationalsofEthiopianoriginareissuedaspecialIDcardentitlingthemtomovefreelywithoutvisarequirementsandtoaccessnationalemploymentopportunities.TheIndianPIOCardschemeisavisa-freeregimeforpersonsofIndianoriginuptothefourthgenerationtosimplifytheirreturnsandofferarangeoffinancialandeducationalfacilities.

The right to buy land and property

The right to buy land and property appears to be another powerful incentive.Portugal,forinstance,eliminatedsalestaxonpropertytransactionsandofferedsub-sidizedinterestratesfortheacquisitionsofpropertiesbydiasporamembers.SpecificprovisionsareguaranteedtonationalsfromtheComunidade dos Países de Língua Portuguesa (CPLP),i.e.Angola,Brasil,CapeVerde,GuineaBissau,Mozambique,Portugal,SaoToméePrincipeandTimorLeste.Finally,intheparticularcaseofpost-conflictorthepost-communistcountriesincentralandeasternEurope,therecoveryofpropertylostupondepartureduringthecommunisttimes,canactasastrongincentiveforinvestmentandreturn.Insomecountriesthisissueremainsunresolved,especiallywhenpropertiesweresoldbythestatetothenewownersmakingrestitutiondifficult.Thisissueplaysnegativelyagainstdiasporareturnsandinvestments.

Portable and transferable social rights

TheWorldBank(2005)emphasizesthesignificanceofportablesocialsecuritybenefits,inparticularpensionandhealthbenefits.However,thisportabilityisusu-allyachievedthroughbilateralsocialsecurityagreementsbetweenthesendingandthereceivingcountries,andtargetsinparticulartemporarylabourmigrants.Hence,diasporamemberswhohavebeenlivingabroadforalongtimebutwouldbeinterestedtoreturntotheirhomecountryareoftennotincludedinsuchagreements.

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vi. idENTifyiNg diASpOrA rESOurCES fOr dEvElOpmENT

human capital

Verybroadlydefined,thehumancapitalavailableindiasporasconcernsthelevelsofeducation,training,skillsandknowledgethatmightbedrawnonforhome-coun-trydevelopmentinitiatives.Interestinhumancapitalshouldinvolvemovementsofbothskilledandunskilledmigrants,notwithstandingthecurrentpolicybiasonhighlyqualifiedmigrants,whosenumbershavegreatlyincreasedandgivenrisetowhatisgenerallyreferredtoas“brain-drain”.

Statisticsconcerningtheemigrationofhumancapitalfromdevelopingcountriesarerevealing.Thus,theUN(2004)estimatesthat,onaverage,migrantswholeavefromLatinAmerica andAsiahaveattended school twiceas longas thenationalaverage, and forAfrica that proportion rises to two-thirds.OfRussian emigrantstotheUnitedStates(Heleniak,2004),42percenthavereceivedhighereducation,comparedto13percentofthepopulationasawhole.One-fifthofChinesestudentsstudyinEuropeandarethesecondlargestgroupofforeignstudentsintheUK,yetonlyalittleunderone-thirdintendtoreturntoChina.76AsfortheCaribbean,halfofthepopulationwithtertiaryeducationliveintheUS(75%forJamaicaandHaiti).Anglophone and Lusophone African countries experience the highest emigrationratesoftheirhighlyskilled.

Braindrainanddiasporichumancapitalareofconcernnotonlyinquantitativebutalsoquanlitativeterms.Forinstance,incentralandeasternEuropeactualnumbersmightnotrepresentaveritableexodus,butitisoftentheyoungandmostdynamicwhomigrateabroadtowork,leavingimportantgapsinthehighersegmentsofthelocallabourmarketandcausingshortagesinsectorsmostimportanttothecountry’ssocio-economicadvancement.Lowell(2003)notesthatforbraindraintooccur,acountryhastosuffersignificantlossesofitshighlyskilledworkforceandsubsequentadverseeconomicconsequences.However,fewstudiesactuallyassesstheconseq-uencesofbraindrainoroffersolutions.OneexampleisastudybyLucas(2004)analysing thenegativecorrelation in low-incomecountriesbetween thefailureofpost-graduatestudentstoreturntotheirhomecountryandthelocalwagelevel.TheUN(2004)considersthatthelossofqualifiedmanpowercausesaninnovationandcreativitydeficitinadditiontolosingtheinvestmentineducatingtheirnationalswhothengotoworkabroadwheretheycanearnmore.Theamountsatstakecanonly

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beestimated,buttheymayrunintoseveralhundredsofmillionsofUSdollarsformigrantshavinggonetoworkintheUSalone.

Currentpolicyobjectivesare,amongothers,facilitatingthecirculationofskillsabletobenefithostandhomecountriesandmigrantsthemselves.Amajorpolicyquestionaffectingcountriesoforiginiswhetherremittancesandotherfinancialtransferscancompensateforhumancapitalloss,asthiswillhaveimportantimplicationsconcerningappropriatepolicydecisionsaimedatencouragingmigrationorattractingdiasporastoreturn.Todeterminethetrade-offbetweenpermanentreturnsofdiasporamembersandthelossintermsofthefinancialtransferstheywouldotherwisehavepotentiallybeenabletocontributeisnoeasytaskandcallsforcautionandcircumspection.Anysimpleequationwherethelossinhumancapitalcanbecompensatedforbyremit-tancesflowsmaybeverymisleadingandspellthefailureofanysuchpolicy.Thereisnohardevidencethatthehighlyeducatedexpatriateworkforcewhoarenormallyincludedinthebraindrain,arealsothosetransferringfundshome.Moreover,remit-tancesmightnotbedirectedattheareassufferingfromalackofqualifiedhumanresources,normighttheybeintendedtocontributetothetypeofsustainablegrowthintendedbythegovernment.Africa,forinstance,receivesonly1.5percentoftheofficialremittanceflows,norwillremittancesnecessarilybenefitregionsthataremostinneedofhumancapital.

Examples of governmental programmes targeting diaspora human capital for development purposes

Numerousprogrammesaimtomatchtheneedsinhumancapitalinthehomecoun-trywiththesupplyofdiasporaskillsabroad,basedontheassumptionthatwithoutanysupportandincentives,theskillsavailableindiasporaswillnotbetransferredtothehomecountry.

Skill-matchingprogrammes,banksordatabasesareexamplesofthistypeofpro-

gramme.Theirnumbersareincreasing,inparticularinAfricancountries:

• TheAfricanExpertsandDiasporasdatabasewaslaunchedin2002attheThirdAfricanDevelopmentForuminAddisAbabaincollaborationwithIOM.Africa-RecruitisaninitiativethatfacilitatesthematchingofprofessionalskillsavailableinAfricandiasporasandjoboffersinAfricancountries,supportedbytheCom-monwealthBusinessCouncilandtheNewPartnershipforAfrica’sDevelopment(NEPAD).

• RedCaldasisaninstitutionalizedprogrammemanagedbytheColombiangov-ernmentagencyColciencasandaimstoestablishanetworkamongColombianresearchersthroughouttheworldandtheircounterpartsinColombia.

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• ThePhilippines’BrainGainNetworkisaninitiativedevelopedincoordinationwiththehighestgovernmentbodyoverseeinginformationandtechnologydevel-opmentinthePhilippines,theE-CommerceCouncil(ITECC).Thenetworkhasalargehumanresourcesdatabaseandsupportsjointbusinessprojects.

• TheArgentineEducationMinistrysetupin2000theRAICESprogrammeandcreatedadatabaseofArgentineprofessionalsabroad.In2002,1,600professionalswereregistered.

• TheSouthAfricanNetworkofSkillsAbroad(SANSA)wascreatedthroughagovernmentalcall,andin2006featured2,200networkmembersworldwide.

• Otherhumanresourcebanksincludethefollowing:Nigeria:theAfricanExpertDiasporasDataBaseNigeria;Azerbaijan:HumanResourcesandIntellectualPool;Benin:CompetenceDatabase;Bulgaria:theStateAgencyforBulgariansAbroad;whichhasadatabaseofmorethan600cultural,professionalandstudentorgan-izationsandaQualificationsAbroaddatabase;Kenya:EducationistandMedicalPractitionersAbroadDatabase;Mexico:QualificationsAbroad;Pakistan:NationalTalentPool,aliaisonagencybetweenPakistanidiasporasandPakistaniorganiza-tionsindiverseareasofspecialization;andPortugal:ProfessionalsAbroad.

IOM’s experience in implementing migration for development (MIDA) pro-grammes77 targeting temporary transfersofhumancapital, inparticular inAfrica,showsthatdiasporamembersarehighlyinterestedinparticipating,providedtheop-portunitiestheyareofferedarecredibleandthatcooperationmechanismsbetweencountriesoforiginandofdestinationallowthemtokeeptheir jobsorbenefits inthehostcountry.TheexperienceoftheTransfer Of Knowledge through ExpatriateTransferOfKnowledgethroughExpatriateNationals(TOKTEN) programme implemented by the United Nations DevelopmentTOKTEN)programmeimplementedbytheUnitedNationsDevelopmentProgramme(UNDP)showsthatifforcertaincountriessuchasMali,78theresultsaresatisfactory,identifyingtherighthumanresourceswithindiasporasremainsakeyissue.

Another noticeable trend is the development of sector-based programmes thatfocusonspecifichumanresourceneedsinthehomecountryandtargettherespect-iveprofessionalgroupswithinthediasporas.Khadria(inBarré,2003)explainsthatcountriesneedtoidentifyspecificsectorswherethereisasocialreturnonexpatriateinvestmentsthatishigherandmoresustainablethanmarketreturnsandrecommendstofocuspolicyactiononspecificprofessionalsectors,insteadofpursuingmanytargets.Theauthoridentifiestwoparticularsectorswheretheinvolvementofthediasporacanmakeadifference,i.e.educationandhealth.Diasporamedicalprofessionalas-sociationsareindeedamongthemostfrequentdiasporapartnersforgovernments.ExamplesincludetheEthiopianHealthProfessionalsinSwedenandtheZambianandCapeVerdeMedicalProfessionalsintheEU.Asaconsequence,governmentsdevelopspecificsector-basedprogrammessuchastheEgyptianFellowshipProgrammefor

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EgyptiandoctorstoworkintheUK(Bach,2003),thePhilippineSectoralDevelopmentNeedsProfilingSystem(PHILNEED)ortheBenineseDatabaseofHealthProfessionalNationalsResidinginFrance.Mostadvancedcountriesalsosetupsuchinitiatives,forinstance,Australiahastwomedicalfellowshipinitiativesforitsownexpatriatesabroad,fundedbytheNationalHealthandMedicalResearchCouncil.

Attheinternationallevel,IOMandtheWorldHealthOrganisation(WHO)areintheprocessofdevelopingadatabasebyfield,levelofcompetence,countryofresidenceandoriginofhealthprofessionals.Moreover,WHOhasurgeditsmemberstatestoadoptstrategiestomitigatetheadverseeffectsofmigrationonhealthworkers.79

Akeytargetforgovernmentalactioninthefieldofexpatriatehumancapitalarestudents.TheChinesegovernment,inparticular,changeditspoliciesinthemid-90stosupportstudentswillingtogoabroadandtoprovidestrongincentivesfortheirreturn.ThisstrategyallowedChinesestudentstojointhe“braincirculation”,whilebetween1995and1998thenumberofreturneesincreasedby13percentannually.80Thereturnrateisexpectedtocontinuetoincreasebyover10percentannually,andmorethan4,000hightechcompanieshavealreadybeensetupbyreturningstudents(ShenWei,2005).Othercountries,suchasMexico,encouragethereturnofscholar-shiprecipientsthroughtheRepatriacion de ex becarios del CONACYTprogramme,whiletheLithuaniangovernmentorganizesscholarshipsforpersonsofLithuaniandescentandencouragesresearcherstoreturnthroughtheReturnofBrainstoLithuaniaprogramme.

Within thebroad rangeofprogrammes focusedonhuman resources availablein diasporas, permanent return programmes need to offer very strong incentives.Evidencefromexistingreturnprogrammesshowsthat ifgovernmental incentivesdoindeedplayarole in thereturndecision,otherrelatedpolitical,economicandsocialfactorsalsomatter.Asurvey81ofmorethan1,500first-generationIndianandChinesemigrantsinSiliconValleyshowedthat74percentofIndiansand53percentofChinesewantedtostartabusinessbackhome.Three-quartersoftheSomalisurveyedintheUK(Bloch,A.andG.Atfield,2002)respondedthattheywouldliketoreturn to theSomali region,but43percenthadnotdecidedwhentheywouldwanttodoso.Politicalreasons(19%)andfutureuncertainty(15%)werethemajorobstaclestothereturndecision.

Theevaluationundertakenby the IOMOfficeof the InspectorGeneralof theReturnoftheAfghanQualifiedNationalsprogramme82showedthatbothemploy-ersandreturneesconfirmedthesuccessoftheprogrammeintermsofknowledgetransfer. Returnees considered their return “correct” despite major constraints inhousing,schoolingandsalaries.IOM’sexperiencewithreturnpoliciesshowsthat

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theemploymentandsocialperspectiveofthereturneesbackhomearethekeyele-mentsforsuccess.

Diasporaindividualsandgroupsfeaturediverseinterestsandstrategies,thereforepoliciestargetinghumancapitalbenefitfrommixingshortandlong-termperspectivesandofferingtemporaryandpermanentreturnincentives.

financial and entrepreneurial capital

Financialtransfersbetweenthehostandthehomecountrycantakemanyforms.Theseincludeforeigndirectinvestments(FDI),trade,remittances,savings,start-uporbusinessinvestments,purchaseofrealestateandhumanitariansupport.Inadd-ition,issuesrelatedtofinancialtransfersattractattentiontolong-termdevelopmentchallenges,suchashavinganoperationalbankingsysteminthehomecountryandpromotingchangesinindividualfinancialandsavingbehavioursinhomeandhostcountries.

There are numerous policy implications regarding the mobilization of the fi-nancialresourcesofdiasporas.Theinternationalcommunityisverymuchfocusedonmigrantworkerremittances,yetthisshouldnotignoreotherformsofdiasporafinancialresources,andthecorrelationsthatmayexistbetweenthem.Attheglo-ballevel,FDIincreasedfromUS$106billionin1995toUS$143billionin2002,whileremittanceflowsalmostdoubledoverthesameperiod,fromUS$48billiontoUS$80billion(WorldBank,2003).Itisdifficulttoestablishacorrelationbetweenre-mittanceinflowsandinvestments.ChinaandIndia,twocountriesthathaveintroducedpoliciestargetingtheircitizensabroad,aretwoimportantexamples.RemittancessentbackbytheChinesediasporaaresmallcomparedtotheactualnumberofChineseabroad,whereasinvestmentsinChinahaveincreasedtremendously.India,incontrast,receivedlimitedforeigndirectinvestmentsandmajorremittancetransfers.DoesthisindicatethatcountrieswithhighremittancetransfershaveratherlimitedFDIflows;andwhatroledoincentivesandmacro-economicpoliciesplay?

AlthoughinformationondiasporacontributionstoFDI,enterprisecreationandtradeisstilllimited,thereareindicationsthatsuchcontributionsaregrowinginsizeand in importance.Thus, in2002abouthalfof theUS$48billionFDI inChinaoriginatedfromtheChinesediaspora(IOM,MRS14,2003).Incomparison,in2002only10percentofIndia’sUS$4.43billionFDIwasgeneratedbyIndiandiasporas.Diasporainvestmentsarelikelytobeaneconomicdecision,generatedbyself-inte-restanddrivenbyprofitmotives,eventhoughanaltruisticelementandinvestmentsinsocialprojectsmightalsobepresent.Fewstudiesinvestigatehowmigrationand

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migrantnetworkscontributetoloweringtransactioncostsandfacilitatinginformationexchange,thusfacilitatingFDIflows.Onesuchstudy83(Javoricik,Ozden,Spatareanu,2004)investigatesthelinksbetweenmigrationandFDIflows,usingdataonmigra-tionintotheUSandFDIbyUSfirmsabroadandfoundthatmigrantstocksintheUSinfluencedFDItowardsthecountriesoforigin.However,morestudiestoexplorethecorrelationbetweenthemigrantstockabroadandFDIlevelsreceivedfromexpatriatecommunitiesareneeded.

Similarly,dataontradeingoodsandservicesinitiatedbydiasporasremainlimited.Lucas(2004)showsthathighlyskilledemigrantswillhaveanimpactontraderela-tionsbetweenhomeandhostcountriesandthatadoublingofskilledimmigrationtoCanadafromEastAsiacouldleadtoasignificantincreaseofimportsintoCanadafromEastAsia.

ThenationaldiscrepanciesthatcanbeobservedintermsofdiasporainvestmentsandtradecanbeexplainedbydifferencesinFDIpolicies,macro-economiccondi-tionsinhomecountries,differentinterestsofdiasporas(moreorlessentrepreneurialpopulations)anddifferencesinincomesinhostcountries.

Asfarasremittancesareconcerned,theWorldBank(Global Economic Prospects,2006)estimatedthatclose to 200 million people live abroad and send about US$ 225loseto200millionpeopleliveabroadandsendaboutUS$225billioninremittances,whilemigrantremittancestodevelopingcountriesareestimatedatUS$167billion.An estimated minimum of US$ 300 billion in unrecorded trans-AnestimatedminimumofUS$300billioninunrecordedtrans-fersshouldbeaddedtothatfigure,whilealsobearinginmindthatmigrantworkers’remittancesdonotcoincidewithdiasporaremittances,asdiasporasincludeexpatriategroupsbeyondmigrantworkers.

In 2004 Mexico (US$ 11 billion) and India (US$ 10 billion) received thehighestlevelsofremittances,whilethetopsendingcountriesaretheUnitedStates(US$31.4billion)followedbySaudiArabia,Germany,Switzerland,BelgiumandFrance. Morocco, Egypt, Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan rank among the ten mostimportant destination countries for remittances (each receiving approximatelyUS$2to3.3billionannually).84

OfficialremittancesareasignificantshareofGDPformanylow-incomecountriesandcountrieswithlargeexpatriatepopulationsabroad:Lesotho(26.5%ofGDP);Haiti(17%);Nicaragua(16.5%);Yemen(16.1%);NicaraguaandElSalvador(14%);Jamaica(12%);DominicanRepublicandHonduras(7%)andthePhilippines(9%)(WorldBank,2005).However,onlyUS$4billionofofficialremittancesreachsub-SaharanAfrica,whereasUS$16billionflowintoSouthAsiaandUS$25billion

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toLatinAmericaandtheCaribbean(WorldBank,2004).Inlow-incomecountriesremittances mainly alleviate severe poverty, and households tend to use them tosatisfybasicneedsratherthanforinvestmentasshownintwoIOMsurveys,theRe-mittances’HouseholdSurveyGuatemala(2004),85andtheRemittances’HouseholdSurveyColombia(2004).86

Diasporafinancialtransferscantakeseveralforms.Thusdiasporaindividualswhoareabletoinvestinbusinessescanbeadifferentgroupfromdiasporastransferringprivateremittancestotheirhouseholdsbackhome.Investinginaproductiveactivitycallsfordifferentincentivesandguaranteesthanremittingfinancialresourcesbackhome,eventhoughremittancescanalsobechannelledtowardsproductiveinvest-ments. In the framework of the MIDA Italy programme, a database was createdtorecordinvestmentprojectssubmittedbytheAfricandiaspora.87Outof the100Ghanaianprojectssubmitted,75wereverymodestinscope.Theseresultsshowthatsomediasporagroupsdonothavethemeanstoinvestintheircountryoforigin,butthattheycanplayothersignificantroles,suchasmiddlemenandfavourbusinessexchanges.88

Finance and business facilitation programmes

Akeypolicyquestionregardingthemobilizationofdiasporafinancialresourcesfordevelopmentiswhethertointroducespecialmeasuresfordiasporas,includingspecificguaranteesandincentives.Thefearofdistortingthemarketinfavourofdi-asporasandmigrantsunderliesthereluctanceoffinancialanddevelopmentinstitutionstocreatesuchpackages.Therefore,someprogrammesarenotspecificallytargetingdiasporas,butaddressgeneralproblemssuchasthelackofaworkingbankingsystemandofasavingsandinvestmentculture.However,governmentshaveintroducedanimportantnumberofmeasuresandprogrammes,someofwhichareschematicallyoutlinedbelow:

• MexicoandtheUSfeatureasuccessfulagreementbetweenbanksandwire-transfer

agenciesintheUSandMexico.Theagreementinvolves15financialinstitutionsandallowsMexicanmigrantstoopenaccountsintheUSwithanidentitycarddeliveredbyconsulates,whiletheirfamiliescanwithdrawmoneyinMexico.

• Colombia,HondurasandChilehavesignedagreementsbetweentheirbanksandconsulates.

• Zimbabwe,SierraLeoneandPeruhavespecialagreementswithHomelink,ForexandInterbank,respectively.

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Somemeasurestofavourdiasporainvestments:

• IndiaandthePhilippinesoffertaxexemptionsandbreaks.• Ethiopiaoffersspecifictaxexemptionsonvehicles,personalbelongingsandin-

vestmentgoodstoreturneesandinvestors.• Bonds for expatriates: In the early50s Israel successfully issuedbonds to the

AmericanJewishdiasporathatcapitalizedonanemotionalinvestmentwhileoffer-ingveryattractivefeatures(differenttypesofbonds,freelytransferable,possibilitytoofferthemasagift,etc.).

• TheIndiangovernmentlaunchedin1998thefirstfive-yearbonds,guaranteedbytheStateBankofIndiafornon-residentIndiansandrenewedtheinitiativein2000.However,theHigh-levelCommittee(HCL)ontheIndianDiasporasnotedthatifIndianexpatriateshavenotinvestedathighlevels,thisisbecauseofageneralunfavourableFDIenvironmentandadministrativeburdens.

• Taxingdiasporasfordevelopmentisveryrare.Eritrea89withone-quarterofitspopulationlivingoutsidethecountry,askedcitizensabroadtopayataxof2percentontheirrevenues.Koser(2003)warnsthattoomanygovernmentalrequestsonthediasporasleadstodisillusionment.

• Institutionsspecializedinattractingforeigndirect investmentsareincreasinglyawareofdiasporasasatargetgroup.GhanahasaspecialagencyforinvestmentsofGhanaiansabroad,andSenegallaunchedthediasporaentrepreneurshippro-grammechannellingdiasporainvestmentstowardssomeproductivesectors.

• Attheinternationalleveldiasporainvestmentforumsrepresentanewtrend;thefirstAfricaRecruitInvestmentForum90wasorganizedin2004withthesupportoftheCommonwealthSecretariat;theAfricanDiasporaInvestmentForumwasorganizedin2006inBrusselsbyAfricanAxis.91TheseeventsraiseawarenessandprovideinformationonvariousinvestmentopportunitiesinAfricaandareashowcaseforsuccessfulstories.

Anumberofbanksofferproductsandservices gearedtotransnationalpopula-tions:

• Banco Solidario fromEquadortogetherwithcounterpartSpanishbankshavede-velopedasavingsaccountcalledMy family, my country, my return,whichallowsmigrantstofullycontroltheirfinanceswhileabroadandtoputasidepartofthefundstobuildahouseorabusiness(USAID,2004)athome.

• TheMoroccanstate-ownedGroupe Banques Populaires(BP)offersacheckingaccountallowingemigrantstoopenanaccountjointlywithafamilymemberbackhome.Atleast60percentofMoroccanremittancestransitthroughtheBPgroup(USAID,2004).

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• Banque de l’Habitat Sénégaloffersspecialservicesformigrants.Banco do Brasilissued special bonds to be used with remittances as collaterals. The MexicanprogrammeZacatecas“threeplusone”matchedeachdollartransferredwithonefromthemunicipality,onefromthestateandonefromthefederalgovernment.

Otherinitiativesaimtochanneldiasporafinancestowardsproductiveuse:

• ThePhilippineslaunchedtwogovernmentalprogrammes:LINKAPILthatchannelsdiasporas’financestowardseducation,healthcareprojectsandmicroprojects,andPHILNEEDtoidentifyprojectsneedingfinancialsupportfromFilipinosabroad.TheFilipinoOverseasWorkersWelfare administration issues an identificationcardtoallworkersthatservesasavisacardandenablesremittancetransfersatlessthanGBP1.65pertransaction(Newland,2004).

• InBrazilandEcuadortheInter-AmericanDevelopmentBankworkswithBanco Sudameris de InvestimentoandBanco Solidario tochannelremittance inflowsintoentrepreneurialactivities.

• InTajikistan,IOMandUNDPworkwithmigranthouseholds,localcommunitiesandcivilsocietyactorsinruralcommunitiestopromotetheinvestmentofremit-tancesinviablelivelihoodsformigrantfamiliesaffectedbyemigration.

• InGuatemala,apilotprojectisundertakenbytheGovernmentofGuatemalawithGuatemalanmigrantsintheUnitedStates,themigrants’familiesinGuatemalaandIOMastheexecutingorganization.Thepurposeoftheprojectistobuildhomesforfamiliesaffectedbyemigration,approximately55percentofwhichwillbefinancedbythegovernmentthroughagrantprovidedbytheFondo Guatemalteco de la Vivienda(FOGUAVI), withtheremaindertobefinancedbyGuatemalanslivingintheUnitedStates.

Fromapolicyperspective,theseprogrammesareinnovativeandbasedonpart-nershipsamongdifferentauthoritiesatmunicipal,regionalandnationallevels.Thesupportofinternationalinstitutionsandinparticularinternationalbankingagenciesappearstoplayakeyrole.Manyquestionscanberaisedaboutthesustainabilityofsuchprogrammesaswellastheadministrativeburdensthattheycreate.Moreevaluationexercisesareneededtoestimatetheeffectivenessintermsofcostsandbenefits.

Social capital

Socialcapitalhasacquiredincreasingrelevanceineconomic,socialandmigrationpoliciesandrefersto“networkstogetherwithsharednorms,valuesandunderstandingthatfacilitatecooperationwithinandamonggroups”(OECD,2001).Trustisakeyaspectofthesocialcapitalnotion,referringtosharedconfidence.TheWorldBank

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hasdevelopedanapproachrelatingsocialcapitaltodevelopment.92Thereareposi-tiveconnotationsattachedtosocialcapital,evocativeofsocialnetworkssupportingexchanges,innovation,enterprisebuilding,financialsupportandtrustininstitutions;butalsonegativeimplicationsthatmighthinderaccesstodevelopment,suchastheperceptionofexclusiveness,privilegeorsocialandpoliticalinfluencepeddling.

Twomaintypesofsocialcapitalinfluencewhatmaybereferredtoaseitherbondingorbridginginrelationtodiasporas:familiesandfriends(bonding)andcommunitiesandinstitutionsinthehostcountry(bridging).Thesemaybemutuallysupportiveormayworkagainsteachotherandinfluenceindividualattitudestowardshomeandhostcommunities.

Thenotionofsocialcapitalisrelevanttodiasporas’issuesandinparticulartotheircontributions todevelopment in theirhomeandhostcountries,because itattractsattentiontothespecificnetworksandconnectionsthatdiasporasshareamongthem-selves,tothespecialtiestheykeepwiththeirhomecountryandhomecommunities,andtothenewrelationstheydevelopwiththeirhostcountryandhostcommunities.Theactualimpactofsocialcapitalontheengagementofdiasporasforhomecountrydevelopmentisnotclearanddifficulttoassess.However,thereisevidence(OECD,2003)thattheexistenceofclosesocialtiesandmutualtrustcanfacilitatetraderela-tionsandreducetransactioncosts,whilealackoftrustinrelationtothegovernmentanditsinstitutions,othermigrants,theprivatesectorandamongdiasporamembersthemselveshindersthedevelopmentandapplicationofpoliciesinvolvingdiasporasfordevelopment.93

Trustamongmigrantsinhostcountryinstitutionsisalsogenerallyweak,especiallyamongthosewhoseconfidenceintheirowninstitutionsathomewasalreadylow.Suchdeep-rooteddistrustwillworkagainstanypolicyinitiativespromotedbythegovernment.EvidencefromIOMstudiesonZimbabweans(Bloch,IOM,2004)andSomalis(Hansen,IOM,2004)showthatexpatriatesdonotwanttogetinvolvedinhomecountrydevelopmentprojectsbecauseoftheirweakconfidenceininstitutionsbackhomeandthefearthatgovernmentsdonotprovidesufficientguaranteesforsustainableinvestments.Inaddition,theBangladeshicasestudy(DeBruyn,IOM,2005)confirmsthathigh-incomediasporas,whowouldhavethefinancialmeanstoinvestbackhomedonotinvestbecauseoflackofconfidenceinthegovernmentandhomecountryinvestmentmechanismsandbankinginstitutions.

Buildingtrustisakeypolicyobjectiveformanyhomeandhostcountriesthatendeavourtorelatewiththeirexpatriatecommunities.Homecountriesaimtobuildtrustthroughpositivecommunicationanddialogue.TheMexicanPresidentFoxad-

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dresseddiasporasas“heroes”,Africandiasporaswereidentifiedasthe“SixthAfricanregion”atthe2004AfricanSummit,andtheSyrianMinistryforExpatriatesreferstodiasporasasthe“themosteffectiveambassadors”.

Inhostcountries,theexistenceofmeasurestargetingforeigndiasporasandmigrantswillhaveabearingontherolethatsocialcapitalwillplayintheirintegration.Forinstance,limitedpublicprovisionscanraisetheimportanceofpersonalandsocialnetworks,favourgeographicalconcentrationsandencouragemigrantstoprivilegetheirbelongingtoanethnicornationalgroup.AtaconferenceconvenedinCanada,“OpportunityandChallengeofDiversity:ARoleforSocialCapital?”,94theroleofsocialnetworkswasdiscussedandacknowledgedasanimportantelementinboththeintegrationprocessinthehostcountryandthemaintenanceofdiasporas’linkswiththeirhomecountry.Policymakerscanplayaroleinsupportingsocialcapitalformationandnurturingtrustinthehostcountrythroughprogrammesthatlinkimmigrantsandthehostcountry,diasporacommunitiesandthehomecountry.

Affective capital

Thenotionofaffectivecapitalcallsattentiontothespecialcommitmentandgood-willthatcanmotivatediversetypesofdiasporacontributionstothehomecountry.TheHigh-levelCommitteeonIndianDiasporas(2001)setuptoascertaintheIndiandiasporasandexplorehowbesttoliaisewiththem,foundstrongevidenceamongtheIndiandiasporasofdeep and binding ties with and commitment to India’s welfareandofreserves of goodwill amongst the Indian diasporas deeply entrenched and waiting to be tapped.Suchcommitmentandgoodwillreflectaninteresttomakeacontribu-tion tohomecountrydevelopment and express an emotional engagement amongdiasporas,basedonasenseofresponsibility,evenpangsofconscienceforhavingleftthecountryoracommitmenttomakethingschange,evenfromabroad.

Suchcommitmentsandcontinuingsentimentalattachmenthasalsogivenrisetowhatmaybetermedanethnicandnostalgicmarketwhichcaterstothetastesandhabitsofexpatriatesabroadbytradinginandprovidinghomecountryproductstomigrantcommunitiessettledabroad.AprimeexamplearetheavailabilityofHispanicproductsintheUnitedStates(Inter-AmericanDialogue,WorldBank,2004)andthenumerousandthrivingAsianoutlets.Suchtraderelationscanrepresentanimportantsourceofrevenueandemploymentforhomecountryproducersandworkers.Thereportconcludesthatappropriatepoliciesmustbedevelopedtocatertothedemandfornostalgicproductsabroadandstrengthentheproductivecapacityandqualitystandardsintheexportingcountries.Whiletheycatertothedemandbymigrantcommunitiesforproductsfromtheirhomecountries,suchpolicyinitiativesarealsointheinterest

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ofbusinesslinksthatspanproducersandconsumersintherespectivehomeandhostcountries,andcanencouragetheirexpansionintoother,largermarketsegments.Anexampleofmeasuresbuildingondiasporaaffectivecapitalisthetradefairorganizedduringthe2004PresidentialForumforSalvadoriansAbroadwherenostalgictradeproductsattractedattentiononthepotentialforSalvadoriansexportsabroad.

However,theexistenceofaffectivetiesshouldnotconcealtheneedforasoundinvestmentenvironmentinthehomecountry,northeprofitmotivethatmightalsodrive diaspora contributions. Thus, the Diasporas Knowledge Networks projectlaunchedbyUNESCOin2004targetsdiasporasasnetworkbuilders,butconsidersthatontheindividualleveldiasporamembersgetinvolvedinprojectsfortheirhomecountriesbecausetheyanticipatepositivereturnsfortheircareersinthedestinationcountries.

local capital

Thenotionof“localcapital”attractsattentiontothefactthatdiasporasareofteninclinedtomakeinvestmentsatthelocallevel,usuallyintheregionorlocalityoforigin,wheretheystillhavefamilytiesandarefamiliarwiththelocalcontext.TheSurveyofLusophoneDiasporaNetworksandAssociations95undertakenin2006byIOMLisbonshowedthatdiasporalinkagesand,inparticular,transfersandinvestmentsarealocal-to-localreality,withamajorityoflocaldevelopmentprojectstargetedtothespecificareasthediasporasoriginatefrom.

Anotherexampleofthesignificanceofthelocallevelfordiasporacontributionsistheincreaseincommunity-basedinitiatives,suchastheMexican,Irish,ItalianandPolishHometownassociations.Thesuccessoflocal-to-localprogrammes,suchasGuanajato(Adopta une Comunidad)orJalisco(loansupportandassistancetosmallbusinessesownedbypeoplefromJaliscolivingintheUS)reliesonthelocaltiesthatdiasporasmaintainwiththeirrespectiveregionsoforigin.Thelocaldimensionallowsdiasporastobestmeasuretheimpactsoftheircontributionsandinvestments.

Governmentsareincreasinglyawareofthelocaldimensionofdiasporainvolvementanddevelopspecificprogrammes.InElSalvadorforinstance,migrantcommunityfundsarechannelledthroughaSocialInvestmentFundforDevelopmentandpre-liminaryresultsareencouragingindifferentregionssuchasLaUnión,SanVicente,Chalatenango,LaPaz,Cabañas,CuscatlánandUsulután.96TheItaliangovernment,in collaborationwith theGhanaianandSenegalesegovernments andwith IOM’ssupport,launchedin2003twomigrationfordevelopment(MIDA)programmestar-getingAfricandiasporasinItaly97thatincludelocaldevelopmentanddecentralized

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cooperationelements.TheseprogrammesarebasedonthefindingthatSenegaleseandGhanaiannationalsinItalyareregionallyconcentratedinthreeregions,Lombardia,VenetoandToscanaandaimtolinklocalcommunitiesinSenegalandGhanawithlocalcommunities inItaly touse localentrepreneurialknowledgetocreatebusi-nessesbackhome.

Municipalitiesandregionsarekeyactorsinsupportingdiasporas.Forexample,themunicipalityofBuenosAiressignedanagreementwiththeUniversityofBuenosAires,theInterRegionalNetworkofLatinAmericasandtheCaribbeanScientists(IRNLAC)toestablishlinkswithArgentineanprofessionalsabroadunderthenameredCre@r.ThemunicipalityofModenaalsodecidedtoworkwithGhanaandwithGhanaianassociationsbecauseoftheirsignificantpresenceandtoacknowledgetheireconomiccontributiontotheregionandtheirintegrationcapacity.98Chinahasalsodevelopedregionalstructurestargetingdiasporas,forinstancetheHenanprovince,throughitsChineseandOverseasCentre99thatactivelysearchesforChineseprofes-sorsoverseastoteachbackhome,theOverseasChineseAffairsOfficeofGuangdongProvince,100aregionalgovernmentalunitspecificallyhandlingtheaffairsofoverseasChinese.ItisnotacoincidencethattheregionsoforiginofagreatnumberoftheChinesediasporamembersarealsothemostdevelopedandbenefitmostfromdiasporareturnsandinvestments(Newland,2004).

However, this localpatternofdiasporacontributionsalsomeans thatdiasporasupportmightbenefitcertainregionsmorethanothersandthereforeadevelopmentstrategysolelybasedondiasporas’contributionsmayleadtounbalancedeffects.

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CONCluSiONS ANd rECOmmENdATiONS

Governmentsareincreasinglyinterestedinmobilizingtheirdiasporasabroadasillustratedbythegrowthingovernmentalinstitutionsandprogrammesdesignedtoworkwithdiasporas.Policyinterestisdrivenbygrowingawarenessabouttheposi-tivedevelopmentimpactsofdiasporacontributions,aswellasbyactivelobbyingfromdiasporagroups.Consequently,governmentsmultiplyprovisionsand initia-tives,targetingmainlythehumanandfinancialcapitalofdiasporas,throughdiverseprogrammesandtools(institutional,legal,financial,etc.).

Thispaper touchedonanumberofquestions that arekey to thepolicymak-ingprocessondiasporasanddevelopment:(1)Howtodefinediasporasandgatherdataondiasporas?;(2)Howcandevelopmentstrategiesbestincorporatediasporacontributionsandmaximize their effects?; (3)How to identifydiasporaspartnersandcooperatewiththem?;(4)Whatinstitutionalframeworkandincentivessupportdiasporacontributions?;(5)Whataretheresourcesavailablewithindiasporasandhowtobestfacilitatetheirtransferandmaximizebenefitsforthediasporasandthehomeandhostcountries?Thecommonlinkbetweenthesedifferentaspectsistobet-terunderstandanddefinepoliciesandtheirrole.Theseconclusionsprovideafinaldiscussiononwhatthispolicyroleisregardingdiasporasanddevelopment;proposegeneralrecommendationsondiasporapolicydevelopmentandsummarizethediffer-entkeystagesofdiasporapolicymaking.

what role for policy?

Tosummarize,fourmajorrolesforpolicyemerge:

• Anenablingrole Interviewswithdiasporamembersshowthatalthoughtheyareinterestedinget-

tinginvolvedindevelopmentprojects,majorobstaclesimpedetheirengagement.Policymakerscanidentifyandaddresstheseobstaclesby,e.g.loweringtransfercosts,alleviatingthebureaucraticburden,simplifyingprocedures,allowingdualcitizenship,identifyinginvestmentprojects,offeringsecurityforbusinesstransac-tionsorensuringtheportabilityofrights.Thisalsoimpliesraisingpublicawarenessontheseobstacles,aswellasclearlydefiningdevelopmentprioritiesandstrategiesrequiringdiasporainvolvement.

• Aninclusionaryrole Studiesondiasporasoftendealwithissuesofimage,perception,identityandtrust.

However,ifthesymbolicinclusionofdiasporasdoesmatter,realinclusion,such

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asthroughaccesstorights,statusandprovisionsisnecessary.Policiescanensuretherecognitionofdiasporasasfullcitizens,recognizetheirinputs,addressmajorimageproblems,buildtrust,favourinstitutionalchangeandbuildleadership.Todoso,governmentsandlocalauthoritiesneedappropriatecapacitytoputinplacepoliciesengagingdiasporasfordevelopment.

• Apartnershiprole Partnershipappears tobeakeywordreferring tomany typesof jointactions:

supportandrecognitionofexistingdiasporasinitiatives,collaborationbetweenhomeandhostcountries,allianceswithassociations,cooperationwithregionsandmunicipalities,collaborationwithprivateinstitutions,academia,publicenterprisesandotherdevelopmentstakeholders.Policycanplayakeyroleinbuildingsuchpartnerships.

• Acatalyticrole Governments,regionalandlocalauthoritiespromoteandfavourapositiveconsi-

derationofdiasporasasdevelopmentactors.Policymanagementisneededtoavoidconflictsofinterestsatinternationallevel(betweenthehostandhomecountry)andatnational level (amongdifferentstakeholders) inorder toachievepolicycoherenceandgooduseofavailableresources.

recommendations

Therearevery fewpoliciesondiasporas thathaveactually carriedout evalu-ationexercises,anddataareveryscatteredonhowthesepolicymeasurestranslateintermsofreturns,investments,tradeexchangesandchangesinsocialandculturalroles.Additionally,thecriteriasetoutforsuccessmightnotalwaysfullyexpresstheresultsattained:returnprogrammesmightactuallyreturnveryfewpeopleintermsofnumbers,butsetinmotionrealdynamicsatlocallevels.Positiverolemodelscanplayagreaterroleinthelongertermthanoriginallyexpected.Moreover,thesamemeasurecanbesuccessfulornotaccordingtothelevelofanalysis,i.e.individual,sectoral,collective,local,regional,nationalorinternational.Itisthereforestilldif-ficulttoprovideaclearappraisalofprogrammesandmeasuresthatwork,allthemoreasthecontextinthehomeandthehostcountrycaninfluencetheresultsofpolicyaction.Bearinginmindtheselimitations,policysuccessinengagingwithdiasporas,asacknowledgedbygovernments,diasporasandexperts,canbesummarizedalongthefollowinglines:

• Estimatetheoffsettingpotentialofmacro-economicandpoliticalsettings.• Recognizetheimportanceoftrust,perceptionsandimages.

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• Acknowledgethediversityofdiasporainterestsandstrategies.• Allowdiasporas’ownershipoftheirinitiativesandcontributions.• Buildcollaborationwithdiasporasbasedonrealisticobjectives,toolsandtime-

frames.• Relateincentivestargetingdiasporacontributionswithdiasporas’rights.• Providegender-specificresponses.• Commitathighinstitutionallevel.• Assessthepotentialnegativeeffectsofdiasporas’policies.• Supportinternalgovernmentalcoherence.• Establishcollaborationbetweenthehomeandthehostcountry.• Devisecomprehensivediasporapolicypackages.

Estimate the offsetting potential of macro-economic and political settings

Politicalstabilityanddemocraticinstitutionsareneededtomakethemostofthediasporapolicyoption,whilemacroandmicrosocio-economicfactorsinthehomecountrywillinfluencethesuccessofpolicy.The2003MPIstudyidentified“poorinfrastructure,underdevelopedmarkets,corruption,poorinvestmentclimate”,asthemain reasons forpolicy failure. Incontrast, lowairfares, transportationandcom-munication costs, as well as building effective infrastructures in home countries,offer strong incentives for diasporas to remain connected. The Dutch PresidencyoftheEUCouncil(August-December2004)identifiedthelackofdemocracyandattractiveeducationasthekeyimpedimenttothereturnofthehighlyskilled.Tech-nicalarrangementstargetedatdiasporascanbeinsufficienttoattractdiasporasifthemacroeconomicandpoliticalenvironmentsareunfavourable.

Furthermore,well-designedprojectscanfaceimplementationproblems.Codesofconductandprotocolsonrecruitmentaresignedbutarenotnecessarilyimplemented,astheyarenotlegallyenforceable.Thefearofcorruptionandthestructuraleconomicobstaclesappeartobeamongthemainlimitationstomakingpro-diasporameasureseffective.

Portugal,SouthKoreaandIrelandcanbeconsideredashavingsuccessfullybene-fitedfromtheirdiasporas,astheytransformedfromcountriesofemigrationintocoun-triesofimmigration.Allengagedinaproactivestrategytowardstheirdiasporas,yetitisdifficulttoaverwhetherdiasporasweretheenginesforgrowthoriftheybenefitedfromafavourablesocial,economicandpoliticaldevelopmentthatofferedtherightconditionstoinvest,startbusinesses,transferfinancesandfinallyreturn.

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Recognize the importance of trust, perceptions and images

Negativeperceptionscanberealobstaclestodiasporapolicydevelopment,giventhatbitterness,suspicion,reluctance,resentment,stigmatizationordiscriminationcanequallyarisefromdiasporas,populationsinthehomecountryorgovernments.Trustcanbestrengthenedthroughpositivecommunicationandthroughparticularmeasuresrespondingtodiasporas’requests(transportation,citizenshiprights,propertyrights,bankingneeds,infrastructuredevelopment,etc.).Establishingdialoguethroughmedia,virtualnetworks,websites,visitstodiasporasandbuildingacommonagendawithdiasporasthroughregularmeetingsandvisitsfavourpositivecommunication.How-ever,symbolicinclusionthroughdialogueandcommunicationneedstobebackedupbyrealinclusionthroughrightsandpartnerships,whiletechnicalarrangementsmightnotbesufficienttobuildtrustandcollaboration.

Acknowledge the diversity of diaspora interests and strategies

“Diaspora(s)”isusuallyunderstoodasacollectivenotion,implyingorganizedgroupsandcollectiveidentities.However,thecollectivefacetofthetermshouldnotleadtoconsideringdiasporasasahomogeneousentity.Theheterogeneityoftheindiv-idualsformingdiasporasandthediversityofgoalspursuedbythemareoneofthegreatestchallengesfordiasporapolicies.Thisdiversityshouldbefullyacknowledgedbydecisionmakers,whootherwiseruntheriskofestrangingmanyindividualswillingtocontributetothedevelopmentoftheirhomelands.Narrowanduniformdiasporaapproachesruntheriskoffacilitatingonlyonetypeofdiasporacontributionsandfailingtoharnessthefullpotentialavailableindiasporas.Forinstance,remittance-focused policies can contribute to making the transfer of private funds safer andmoreefficientbutwillnotmaximizethepotentialofhighlyskilleddiasporasorofsecond-generationexpatriateseagertoinvest,transferknow-howtohomecountriesorencouragetransnationalexchanges.

As an example, theEthiopiangovernment101 initially tried to attract anduniteexpatriatecommunitiesintoone“diaspora”,butwasthenfacedwithadiversityofinterestsandexpectationswithintheEthiopianexpatriatecommunities.Consequently,thegovernmentadoptedadifferentapproach,offeringconcreteprojectsforinvestmentandidentifyingdevelopmentpriorities,allowingdiasporastochosethecontributionstheywishedtomake.

Allow diasporas to keep ownership of their initiatives and contributions

Policycanrecognizediasporas’owndrive,whetherdrivenbyaltruismorprofitmotives.IOM’sexperienceoninstitutionalizingthelinkbetweengovernmentsand

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theBangladeshidiasporas102 shows thatgovernments should leave theownershipoftheinitiativestodiasporasthemselvesandgiveprioritytodiasporaconcerns.Inmanycases,diasporasarefamiliarwiththehomecountrycontext,hencecanactasfirstmoversandstartinnovativeprogrammesbasedontheirinternationalexperience.Governmentalactioncansupportandfacilitatetheaccessofdiasporaorganizationsthatactasbridgesbetweenthehomeandthehostcountry.TheHigh-levelCommit-tee(HLC)onIndianDiasporasanalysedhowthegovernmentsofLebanon,Greece,Poland,Italy,JapanandthePhilippinesinvolvedtheirdiasporasandconcludedthatsuccessfulgovernmentalstrategieswerebasedoninteractionwithwell-fundedandwell-staffeddiasporaorganizations.Chikezie,ExecutiveDirectorofAFFORDcon-sideredthatwhencollaborationwithdiasporagroupsisdifficulttoestablishatahighlevel,governmentsshouldfavourgrassrootstrategiesinsteadandworkontheareasthatareofkeyimportanceforcommunitiesandwherediasporasarealreadyactive.

Theexampleofprogrammeschannellingremittancesfromconsumptiontowardsdevelopmentprojects, illustrates thepotential riskofdeprivingdiasporasof theirdecision-makingmechanism.Remittancesareprivatefundsthatcannotreplacepublicinvestmentsorofficialdevelopmentassistance,andpolicycanonlyfacilitatetheirtransfersandproposeinnovativeprogrammesandtoolsallowingthosewhowishtoinvestinspecificprojectsandschemes.

Build collaboration with diasporas based on realistic objectives, tools and timeframes

Governmentsacknowledgethat theyfacemanyobstacles impedingtheirworkwithdiasporas.Forinstance,the2005IOMsurveyondiasporapoliciesshowedthatgovernmentsencounteredproblemstoassessthediasporadevelopmentpotential,i.e.toaccuratelyidentifytheresourcestheycanofferfordevelopmentpurposes;tocol-lectandespeciallyprocessdataondiasporas;tomobilizefinancesforgovernmentalworkwithdiasporas;tobuildcommunicationamongdepartments,communityrep-resentativesandcorporateactors;tobuildpartnershipswithhomeorhostcountriesandtoovercomecompetitionamongdiasporagroups.Mobilizingfinancestosupportgovernmentalworkwithdiasporasremainsamajorissue,inparticularindevelopingcountries.Somegovernmentsconsiderthatfinancingshouldcomefromtheprivatelevel, either through private partnerships or from diasporas themselves. Furtherevaluationofpolicycostscanhelpdefinethecostsandbenefitsofprogrammesandmeasures.Theseobstaclesandlimitationsneedtobeclearlyidentifiedandaddressedtoavoidunrealisticexpectationsfromdiasporasconcerninggovernmentactivities.

The experience of El Salvador with 2 million expatriates abroad and a localpopulationof6.1millionshowsthatgenuinecollaborationwithdiasporascannotbe

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establishedinashortperiodoftime.TheSalvadorianprogrammeSalvadorenos en el exterior,forinstance,istheresultof15yearsofdialogueandworkmobilizingdiasporasanddevelopmentorganizationsatlocallevel.

Relate incentives targeting diaspora contributions with diaspora rights

Dualcitizenship,votingrights,propertyrights,pensionandsocialsecuritybenefittransfers, savings schemes, identification cards that also offer remittance transferservicesat lowratesareall examplesof rightsandservices thatcanbeprovidedtodiasporamembersandthatformallyacknowledgetheirtransnationalbelonging.Thegrantingofdualcitizenshipappearstobeoneofthemostsignificantmeasures,formalizingthedoublebelongingofdiasporas.However,manycountriesstillremaincautiousonthisissue.DiasporagroupshaveplayedasignificantlobbyingroleinthegrantingofdualcitizenshipinAustraliaorIndia.Burundi,Philippines,GhanaandArmenia,amongothers,havegranteddualcitizenshipinrecentyearswiththeobject-iveoffacilitatingdiasporaengagement.

Inaddition,averystrongincentivefordiasporacontributionstohomedevelop-mentisthesimplificationofbureaucratic proceduressuchasbeingabletoregisterorupdatepapersonlineandaccesstoaone-stop-shopforinvestmentorbusinessmatters.Policyshouldbeabletodefinewhatincentiveswillencourageaspecificdiasporagroup,accordingtotheirneedsandexpectations.

Provide gender-specific responses

Thereisinsufficientawarenessofhowgenderrelationsinstitutionalizedinfami-liesandhouseholds,communitiesandsocialstructuresshapemigration,andhowthey influence the potential of diasporas to contribute to development. Male andfemalediasporamemberscanfacedifferentopportunities,andoftendrawondiffer-entresources,networksandinstitutions.Theycanalsohavedifferentexpectationsandsomeincentiveswillworkbetterforonegroupthananother.Genderishighlycontextualandbecauseitinteractswithclass,ethnicity,religionandotherfactors,itpresentsparticularchallengesforpolicy.Gender-blinddiasporapoliciescanleadtoinappropriateresponsesthatdonottakespecificexpectationsintoaccount.

Commit at a high institutional level

Politicalengagementwasidentifiedasakeyreasonforsuccess,combinedwithpoliticallegitimacyandrecognitionfromdiasporas.Programmessupportedatpresid-entiallevelsuchasColombiaNos Une,achievedgoodresultsdespitelimitedfunds.

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IOM’sexperienceofMIDAprogrammesalsoshowedthatinstitutionalcommitmentandleadershiparekeytosuccessfulimplementation.103

Assess the potential negative effects of pro-diaspora policies

Researchondiasporas, remittancesandmigrationanddevelopmentpointsoutpotentialdrawbacksandadverseeffectsofdiasporapolicies.Policymakersshouldbeabletoidentifythesepotentialnegativeimpactsofapro-diasporaspolicyinthecontextoftheirhomecountry.Examplesofsuchadverseresultsare:

• Dependency:Remittancescanrepresentahighinjectionofresourcesforpoorcoun-triesandasourceofadditionalincomeforhouseholds.However,moreattentionshouldbepaidonimpactsatindividual,localandnationallevels.Howsustainableisnationalgrowthbasedonexternalcontributions?Whataretheadverseeffectsonemploymentandenterprisecreationinhomecountries?Whataretheimpactsonfamilies,andinparticular,childrenleftbehind?

• Inequality:Diasporacontributions,inparticularthroughthetransferofremittancestohouseholdscancontributetodeepeningtheinequalitybetween“thosewhohave”and“thosewhodon’t”havefamiliesabroad.

• Negative attitudes back home:Offeringspecificadvantagestodiasporasinordertorewardreturningmigrantsortoencouragediasporainvestmentscanprovokenegativereactionsinthehomecountryandresentmentagainstpeoplewhohavenotsufferedliketherest of usandwhonowcomebackwithhigherwagesandnumerousadvantages.

• Limited impact on alleviating real poverty: Studiesshowthatremittancesdonotalwaysgotothepoorest,simplybecausetheyarenottheoneswhocanmigrate.Theseinflowsoffinancescanalsocontributetomaintainingexistingstructuresandelitesandslowdownnecessaryreforms.Diasporas-drivendevelopmentpoliciescannotbeconsideredasapanaceaandneedtobecomplementedbynumerousotherdevelopmentmeasuresandprogrammes.

• Growth based on exogenous factors: Thishighdependencyonexternalflows,inparticularfinancial,comingfromdiasporasraisesquestionsaboutendogenousdevelopmentversusdevelopmentledbyexogenousinputs.Howmuchdoremit-tancescontributetoinnovativesolutionsforjobcreationatalocallevelforinstance,when90percentofremittancestoColumbia104godirectlyintoconsumption?

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• Making migration seem “the” solution to individual and collective development:Positiveimagesofexpatriaterolemodelscansupportdiasporaengagementfordevelopmentinbothhomeandhostcountries.Yet,questionscanberaisedcon-cerningtherisksofover-representingdiasporasas“winners”and“rolemodels”andtheconsequencesofsuchimagesonfuturemigratorymovements.

Support internal policy coherence

InmanycountriestheMinistryofInteriorisinchargeofmigration,theMinistryofForeignAffairsofdiasporasandothernationalandlocalagenciesareresponsibleforaidanddevelopmentmatters–hence,thechallengeofachievinginternalpolicycoherence.Thelackofcollaborationamongdifferentgovernmentalbodiescanoftenbeacauseforprogrammedelay.Therefore,theincorporationofdiasporaprogrammesintoexistingdevelopmentandmigrationstrategiesisakeyfactorforpolicysuccess.Albania,forinstance,devisedaNationalActionPlanonMigration105in2005thatisacomprehensivemigrationpackage,includingawholedevelopmentstrategyintegra-tingdiasporacontributions.

Awarenessoftheissueofinternalpolicycoherenceisgrowingonhostcountries’side.The Netherlandsoutlinedthearticulationbetweentheirmigrationanddevelop-mentpoliciesinapolicymemorandum“Mutualinterest,mutualresponsibilities:Dutchdevelopmentcooperationenroute to2015”(2004).InBelgium, theSenatevotedrecommendationstothegovernmentonthelinksbetweenmigrationanddevelop-mentandaconferencewasdevotedtothesubjectinMarch2006.106TheUKHouseofCommonsaddressedtheissueofinternalcoherenceinanumberofdocumentssince2003.Migrationingeneralisgraduallybeingconsideredindevelopmentplans,suchastheEuropeanUnionactionplansforAfghanistan,Albania,Iraq,MoroccoandSomalia.

Establish collaboration between home and host countries

Bothintegrationpoliciesinthehostcountryandpro-diasporapoliciesofthehomecountry raise issues of social inclusion and belonging. This questions diasporas’doubleallegiancetothehostandthehomecountry,andpotentialfrictionsbetweentheinclusioninthehostsocietyandthebelongingtoadiasporaidentity.Empiricalstudiesshowthatthedoubleallegiancecanworkwellwhenmigrantsarewellinteg-ratedintothehostcountrybutstillmaintainlinkswiththeirhomecountry.Onthecontrary,migrantswholiveingeographicallyandethnicallyconcentratedareasandwhoremainexclusivelyloyaltotheirhomecountrieshavefewerresourcesinthehostcountryandtheircontributionstohostandhomecountriesarecorrespondinglylimited.TheUKJointCouncilfortheWelfareofImmigrants(HouseofCommons,

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2003-04)arguedthattheutilityofmigrantsasdevelopmentactorsislinkedtotheimprovementoftheiremploymentandsocialconditionsinhostcountries:thebet-tertheconditionsofmigrantsinthehostcountry,thegreatertheirimpactasagentsofdevelopmentforbothhomeandhostcountries.NewZealand,initsSettlementStrategies(Spoonley,2004),highlightsthepositiveoutcomesforbothmigrantsandhostcommunitiesofanintegrationthatrespectsculturaldiversityandevenfavourslinkageswithhomecountries.

Betterintegratedmigrantsineducation,employment,housing,socialnetworksandcommunitiescancontributemore to theirhomecountries thanmigrantswithanuncertainstatus,whoareunemployed,underestimatedandisolatedintheirhostcommunities.However,itisdifficulttosaywhetherinthelongtermtheinterestinthehomecountry fadesaway.AsNewland (MPI,2003) sees it, thepro-diasporapoliciesarestilltoorecenttojudgewhetherpeoplewill“buythelargernotionofnon-territorialmembership”oftheirhomecountry,or“proceedonthepathoffullerintegration”intheirhostsociety.

Devise comprehensive diaspora policy packages

Thereisaclearfocusatnationalandinternationallevelsontwomainaspectsofthemigrationanddevelopmentnexus:remittancesandskills’transfers.Ifthesetwoelementsareofmajorimportanceinthedebate,theyshouldnotleadtoaneglectofotherrelatedaspects,inparticularothertypesoffinancialtransferssuchasinvestments,theroleofdiasporasasentrepreneursorthechangesinsocialandculturalbehavioursconveyedbydiasporaindividualsorgroups.Comprehensivediasporapackagesallowdiasporamemberstoconsiderpositivelytheirinteractionwithgovernments,sensingthatgovernmentsarenotonlyinterestedin“tappingintotheirmoney”,butareap-preciativeofthefullrangeofservicesandskillsthatdiasporascanofferforthebenefitofthehomeandthehostcountry.Diasporapolicybenefitsfromdealingwithhuman,social,economicandfinancialexchangesinacomprehensivemanner,aswellasfromresponsesatdifferentlevels,i.e.international,nationalandlocal.

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diaspora policy roadmap

Define and identify diasporas

1. Gatherexistingdataondiasporas:size,geographicaldistribution,gender,age,education,skills,occupationalandresidencestatus,contributionstotrade,FDIandremittancesflows,belongingtonetworks,groups,organizationsandassocia-tionswithadevelopmentobjective.

2. Identifyknowledgeanddatagapsaswellaslimitationstotheregistrationofpopulationsabroad.Improvequantitativeandqualitativeknowledgeondiaspo-rasthroughpopulationcensusandregistrationabroad,questionnaires,surveys,exchangeofdatabetweenhostandhomecountries,analysisofexitandentranceflows.

3. Acknowledgethediversityofdiasporastrategies,backgroundsandinterestsandrefrainfromadoptinghomogenizingdefinitionsandapproachesinordertobeabletodefinealargerangeofareasforcollaboration.

Identify key development priorities and concrete projects to build a common agenda with diasporas

4. Undertakeacomprehensiveassessmentofdevelopmentneedsandprioritiesinthehomecountry.Thelinkbetweendiasporasanddevelopmenthastobewelldefinedfromthestartinordertoavoidunrealisticplansandunfulfilledexpecta-tions.

5. Invitediasporarepresentatives,associationsandrepresentativesandintegratetheircontributionsintoexistingendogenousdevelopmentstrategies:homecountriestoinvolverepresentativesofdiasporasinthepreparationoftheirannualdevelop-mentstrategiesorthemakingoftheirpovertyreductionschemes;hostcountriestoworkwithrepresentativesofforeigndiasporastocontributetothemakingofdevelopmentstrategiestargetingthediasporas’countriesoforigin.

6. Matchdiasporaresourceswithgenuinedevelopmentneedsandfacilitatecooper-ation between diasporas and existing development institutions (investmentprojects, microcredits, mutual funds) and innovative development practices(businessincubators,clustersofenterprises,socialenterprises,womennetworks,businessservices,activitiesofchambersofcommerce,training,etc).

7. Support theparticipationofdiasporas inpartnershipswith theprivatesector,academia,thepublicsector(hospitals,schools,etc.),internationalorganizations,NGOs, recruitment agencies, business development services or chambers ofcommercethatcanrelatediasporainputstoidentifieddevelopmentneeds.

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8. Takeexistingmacroandmicrosocio-economicfactorsinthehomecountryintoaccountduringthepolicydesignprocessthatcanoffsetorenhancethesuccessofpolicyinitiatives.

Identify partners among diasporas and recognize their own agenda

9. Builddatabaseslistingdiasporainitiatives:communityprogrammes,networks,associations, professional and business clubs and other grassroots organiza-tions.

10. Support already formed and active diaspora networks and organizations andassistthemintherealizationoftheirownagendas.

11. Defineandtakeintoaccountgenderspecificities,interestsandstrategiesamongdiasporamembersasthesecanleadtodifferentiatedexpectationsandcontribu-tions.

Identify how and where diasporas will add value to the development agenda

12. Profilediasporasaccordingtoprofessionalcategories,qualificationsandskills;undertakeanassessmentofskillsandqualificationsobtainedabroad.Thefocusonthehighlyskilledshouldnotleadtoaneglectofotheraptitudesandskillsvitalforhomeandhostcountries.

13. Adoptasector-basedapproach:provideresponsesaccordingtotheparticularchallengesofprofessionalsectorssuchasinformationandtechnology,themedi-calprofessions,education,policeandsoon.

14. Identifywhatcontributionsarealreadybeingmadebydiasporasintermsoftradeshares,investmentsandbusinesscreationinthehomecountry.

15. Support regional, municipal and local projects that can provide specific andtargetedopportunitiesfordiasporaswhoareofteninterestedininvestingintheirregionoforiginoronetheyknowwell.

16. Capitalizeonexistingdiasporasocialcapitalnetworkswithaviewtofacilitatingandloweringthecostoftransfers.

17. Explorethepotentialnegativeimpactsofpro-diasporapoliciesinthecontextofthehomecountry.

Adopt incentives that will attract diasporas to participate in development programmes

18. Relatemeasures targetingdiasporacontributions to thegrantingof rights fordiasporas,suchasdualcitizenship,votingrights,propertyrights,socialrights,nationalorspecialidentificationcards,etc.

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19. Relatemeasurestargetingdiasporacontributionswiththeprovisionofservicesfordiasporas:accesstocreditsandmicrocredits,businessregistrationservices,remittancetransferservicesatlowrates,etc.

20. Favour the transferability and portability of social rights, pensions, savingsschemes,invalidityrights,etc.betweenthehostandthehomecountry.

21. Promoteandadvertisethesimplificationofbureaucraticproceduresasanincen-tive toattractandchannel resources from thediaspora towardsdevelopmentprojects.

22. Define, where appropriate, special schemes for diasporas offering financialadvantages,fiscalincentivesandtaxbreakswhilekeepinginmindthatthesemeasuresmaybeunpopularwiththepopulationinthehomecountry.

Identify major obstacles to diaspora contributions

23. Explorewhichstructural,macroandmicro-economicsettings,cultural,social(education,health,housing)andpoliticalcontextsmayhinderpolicysuccessandoffsettheeffectsoftechnicalarrangements.

24. Identifytheobstaclesthatdiasporasperceiveasbarrierstotheircontributions:lackofanappropriatetransportorbankinginfrastructure,bureaucraticburdens,weakpartnerships,corruption,lackofsupportnetworks,unclearinterlocutorsatgovernmentallevel,poorconsularservices,etc.

Choose appropriate policy tools

25. Analysethepolicycontexttodeterminewhichtoolswillbeappropriateandef-fectiveinagivenenvironment.

26. Selectfromabroadrangeofmeasures:direct(taxbreaks,matchingfunds,humancapitalprogrammes,informationcampaigns,homecomingeventsfordiasporas,scholarships,etc.)andindirect(developinginfrastructures,alleviatingbureau-craticburden,buildingpartnerships,developinggeneralfinancialandbusinessfacilitationinstruments,etc).Amixtureofdirectandindirectmeasuresensuresabalancedapproach.

Build governmental capacity to work with diasporas

27. Ensurethatpolicyengagementisclear,wellknownandsecuredatseniorgov-ernmentallevelinordertobuilddialoguewithdiasporasandthelegitimacyforthepolicytargetingdiasporas.

28. Ensurethatresourcesdevotedtodiasporapoliciesmatchobjectives.29. Promoteinstitutionalchangetohelppublicservantscollaborateeffectivelywith

diasporarepresentativesandcontributetoleadershipbuilding.

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30. Shareknowledgewithothercountriesworkingwithdiasporas,discuss inter-nationalexperiences,placethediasporadebateinabroaderdevelopmentandmigrationpolicyandresearchcontext.

31. Ensurethatprogrammesfeatureevaluationandassessmentcomponentsthatcanprovideinformationoncostsandbenefits,theadministrativeburdensgeneratedandachievementsthatwouldnothavebeenpossiblewithoutpolicyinterven-tion.

Encourage policy coherence

32. Promotedialoguewithingovernmentsandwithregionalandlocalauthoritiesondiasporamattersinthehomeandhostcountries.

33. Establishdialogue,exchangeofknowledgeandpartnershipsbetweenhostandhomecountriesinordertoavoidthatthepro-diasporaapproachisinconflictwithotherpolicies,suchastheintegrationpolicyinthehostcountry.

34. Ensure coherence between pro-diaspora policies and other national policiesandthattheycontributetootherobjectivesalreadyontheeconomicandsocialagenda.

35. Ensurepolicycoherencebetweenmeasurestargetingowndiasporasabroadandforeigndiasporasontheterritory.

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20 policy guiding questions

1 HowdoIdefinediaspora(s)?

2 HowdoIcountandregisterdiasporas,whatdatadoIneed?

3 Whoaremypartnersamongthediasporas?

4 Whataretheagenda,prioritiesandexpectationsofthediasporas?

5 Whoisinchargeofdiasporaissuesinmygovernment,howdodifferentinstitutionscollaborateonthismatterandwhataretheresourcesdevotedtotheseactivities?

6 Whataretheextentandresourcesofmyconsularnetworkandotherservicesfornationals/citizensabroad?

7 Whatarethedevelopmentgoals,prioritiesandstrategiesIwanttoinvolvediasporasin?

8 Howdotheymatchthoseofthediasporas?

9 What are the main resources available within diasporas (human, social,entrepreneurial,financial,affective,local)thatIwanttotarget?

10 Whatknow-howandqualificationsare availablewithindiasporas;whataretheneedsofmycountryintermsofhumancapitalandhowcantheybematched?

11 Whataretheflowsandtrendsintermsofinvestmentsandtransferofremit-tancesfromthediasporastothehomecountryandwhatmechanismsarealreadyinplacetosupportthem?

12 Whataretheexistingtradeandbusinessexchangesestablishedbyindividu-alsfromthediasporaswiththehomecountry?

13 Whatdiasporanetworksexist topromoteexchangesbetweenhomeandhostcountries(cultural,social,political,professional,business,academic,etc.)?

14 Whatgenderspecificitiescanbeidentifiedwithinthediasporas:numbersofmenandwomen,professionalandeducationallevels,behaviour,strategies,expectations,organizednetworksandassociationsandhowcanmypolicybetailoredinresponsetothesespecificities?

15 Whatisthepoliticalparticipationofthediasporas(citizenship,elections,eligibility, consultations, etc.) andwhatmeasurescould favourdiasporaparticipation?

16 Arethesocialrightsofdiasporasportableortransferable(pensions,socialsecurity);ifnot,isitanobstacletotheirinvolvementinactivitiesinthehomecountry?

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17 Whatisthedegreeoftrustinthediasporatowardsthegovernmentofthehomecountryandwhatistheimageofthehomegovernmentandofthecountry,abroadandamongdiasporas?

18 Whatarethemainobstaclesthatcanimpedepolicy:tangibleobstaclessuchas technical,financial, infrastructural,macro-economicoradministrativeobstacles;andintangibleobstaclessuchasnegativeimagesandperceptionsorthelackoftrust?

19 Whoaremypartnerswithinthelocal,private,andnon-governmentalstake-holdersthatcouldbeinterestedinworkingmorecloselywithdiasporas?

20 Whicharethemainhostcountrieswheremydiasporasaresettled;howdoIengageinadialoguewiththemandwhataretheirpoliciestowardsmydiasporagroupsontheirownterritory?

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ANNEx

iOm activities, trends and programmes

ThefollowingIOMevents,studiesandprogrammesarequotedinthispaper;thelistisnotexhaustiveofIOM’sworkonmigration,diasporasanddevelopment.

major iOm diaspora programmatic trends

Governance and policy dialogue• Policyadviceonmigrationanddevelopment• Facilitate collaboration between home and host countries on migration and

development• Capacitybuilding• Technicalcooperation

Research• Migrationanddevelopment;diasporas’surveys,diasporas’policysurvey;di-

asporaorganizations’survey,remittances’surveys

Knowledgesharing• Conferences,roundtables,workshops

Human capital• Skillsmatching• Sectorbaseddatabanks• Returnandreintegrationofqualifiednationals(RQAN)• Mobilityofhealthworkers

Financial capital• Remittancesprogrammes• Linkingremittancetransferswithcommunitydevelopment• Enhancingtheimpactofremittancesthroughmicro-finance• Supporttosocialinvestmentfunds

Mobilization of resources• Reconstructionandpost-conflict/post-naturaldisasterassistance• Migrationfordevelopmentprogrammes

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Information• Integratedinformationsystems• Settingupwebsitesfordiasporas• Awareness-raisingcampaigns• Diasporasfordevelopmentstudytour• Diasporasandgender-specificprogrammesfordevelopment• Pre-departurepreparationofmigrants• Facilitationoflabourmigration• Returnsupportprogrammesforstudentsandscholarshipholders

Services to diasporas• Out-of-country/externalvoting• Compensationprogrammes

Training of decision makers on diasporas

Programme evaluation (IOM Office of the Inspector General)

Examples of events

• WorkshoponMigrationandDevelopment, (February2005)heldinpartnershipwithDFIDUKandtheMinistryofForeignAffairsoftheNetherlands.TheWorkshopReportentitled“Mainstreamingmigrationintodevelopmentpolicyagendas”wasreleasedin2005

• WorkshoponMigrationandDevelopment,(March2006)organizedbyIOMBrus-selsincollaborationwiththeBelgiangovernment,theEuropeanCommissionandtheWorldBank

• MinisterialConferenceoftheLeast-developedCountriesonEnhancingtheDe-velopmentImpactofRemittances,(February2006)heldinCotonou,Benin.Theworkshopreportwasreleasedin2006

• ContributionsofDiasporas,(May2006)heldaspartofUNITAR/UNFPA/IOMSeriesofTrainingWorkshopsonKeyMigrationIssues,launchedin2005

• Migration and Development Training Workshop organized by IOM and HEI(Institut Universitaire des Hautes Etudes Internationales),(May2006),Geneva,Switzerland

• WorkshoponDiasporas,MigrationandDevelopmentfortheCPLPCountrieswasorganizedbyIOMLisbonandCPLP(PortugueseSpeakingCommunity),(June2006)

• DialoguewithPostalServicesonRemittancesforDevelopmentheldduringtheUnitedNationsEconomicandSocialCouncil(ECOSOC)sessioninGeneva(July2006).ThisDialoguewasorganizedbyIOMincollaborationwiththeForumforPostalServiceResearchandDevelopmentinAfrica(FPRDA)

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• WorkshoponMigration,DevelopmentandPovertyReductionwasorganizedbyIOMandAfricanCapacityBuildingFoundation(ACBF)(August2006)

Examples of IOM programmes

Programmes directly targeting diasporas:

• MigrationforDevelopment(MIDA) Programmestrategyformobilizingthehumanandfinancialresourcesofthedi-

asporasfordevelopmentbasedonthreemajorlines:(a)locatediasporasabroadandidentifyspecificneedsinAfrica;(b)involvethecountryofresidenceinajointpartnershipand(c)targetspecificcountriesoforiginandofdestination.MIDAisacapacitybuildingprogrammewhichaimstoassistAfricancountriestostrengthentheirinstitutionalcapacitytosupporttheinvolvementofdiasporas.

• MIDAGhanaandMIDASenegal(PhaseII,2006)Mobilization of Senegalese andMobilizationofSenegaleseandGhanaiansExpatriatesandoftheirhostingcommunitiesinItaly,(PhaseI,2004),supportbyItaliangovernment

• MIDAMobilizationofAfricanDiasporasinBelgium,GreatLakesI,IIandIII2001-2004-2006,supportbyBelgiumgovernment;organizationin2006oftheRoundTableone-learningbringingtogetherdiasporasandacademiafromBurundi,RwandaandDemocraticRepublicofCongoinButare,Rwanda

• MIDASomalia,supportbyUSAID(2006)• MIDASouthSudan,supportbyEuropeanUnion• MIDAEthiopia,supportbySwedishgovernment(2006)andMIDA Return ofMIDAReturnof

Qualified Healthcare Professionals from Sweden to Ethiopia, IOM Helsinki2004

• MIDAMicroEnterpriseDevelopmentforGuineanWomenthroughtheprovisionofmicrocreditsandmobilizationofwomenfromthediasporas,2003-2004

• MIDAOptionsfortheGhanaianDiaspora’sInvolvementfromtheNetherlandsinMIDAmobilizationofworkersfromthediasporasBenin,2004,MIDABenin

• MitigatingBrainDraininHealthSector,IOMGhanaNetherlands,2002• MIDACapacityBuildingforEastAfricanGovernments,2003• MIDAMorocco(inpreparation),BelgiumGovernment

Recent “Return of Qualified Nationals” (RQN) programmes include ReturnofQualifiedAfricanNationals,RQANPhaseIII; ReturnoftheQualifiedAfghanNationals,RQANcoordinatedbyIOMBrussels, incollaborationwith theEu-ropeanCommission;ReturnofQualifiedAfghanNationalsfromFinland; LookandSeeAfghanistan,informationforreturn;ReturnofJudgesandProsecutorstoMinorityAreasinBosniaandHerzegovina;Reconstruction,CapacityBuildingandDevelopmentthroughtheReturnofQualifiedNationalstoBosnia;Return

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andReintegrationofQualifiedUgandanNationals;ReturnandReintegrationofRwandanNationals;ThaiExpertProgramme(THEP);ReturnandReintegrationofQualifiedJamaicanNationalsforDevelopment(ROT)phasesIandII.

Other:

• 24-HourDiasporaAwarenessRaisingCampaigns(launchedinLondon,March2006)

• EstablishmentofanObservatoryof theMoroccanCommunityLivingAbroad(EOMC),IOMandTheHassanIIFoundationfortheMoroccanslivingabroadon-going

• NationalCommunityFundProgrammeforGuatemala:JointInvestmentSystembetweenLocalVillagersandMigrants,IOMGuatemala,2005

• “DiasporasforDevelopmentStudyTourtothePhilippines,organizedwithseniorgovernmentofficialsfromtenWestAfrican,NorthAfrican,MiddleEasternandAsiacountries,2003

• ResearchandSkillsBankDevelopment toLinkQualifiedSomalilandNation-alsResidinginNordicandEUCountrieswithManpowerNeedsinSomaliland,2005

• TechnicalAssistanceHaitianProject(HTPA)DialoguewiththeHaitiandiasporacivilsociety,2000

• ExternalVotingProgrammes,inBosniaandHerzegovina,EastTimor,Kosovo,AfghanistanorIraq

Surveys

• SurveyofPoliciesEngagingDiasporas forDevelopment, IOMGeneva,2005,published in International Migration Dialogue, Mainstreaming Migration into Development Agendas,2006

• Survey of Lusophone Diaspora Associations in Portugal, IOM Lisbon, PortugalSurveyofLusophoneDiasporaAssociationsinPortugal,IOMLisbon,PortugalSeminarondiasporas from theCommunityofPortugueseSpeakingCountries(CPLP),tobepublishedin2006

• RemittancesintheGreatLakesRegion,IOMBrussels,EnglishandFrenchver-sionsavailable,2006

• EnhancingtheImpactoftheSalvadorianDiasporaintheDevelopmentofElSal-vador,IOM1035Fund,2006

• FacilitationofRecruitmentandPlacementofForeignHealtcareProfessionalstoWorkinthePublicSectorHealthCareinSouthAfrica:Assessment,2006

• ResearchonRemittancesinSerbia,IOMincollaborationwiththeSwissForumforMigrationandtheEuropeanBankforReconstructionandDevelopment(EBRD),supportedbytheSwissgovernment,2006

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• EnhancingtheImpactoftheSalvadorianDiasporaintheDevelopmentofElSal-vador,pilotproject2006

• NewPerspectivesofLatinAmericanMigrationinEurope:ColombianImmigrantsinLondon,IOM1035Fund,2005

• FeasibilityStudyonRegistrationofAlbanianEmigrants,IOM1035Fund,2005• RemittancesSurveyAlbania,IOMAlbania,2005• RemittancesSurveyinMoldova,IOMMoldova,2005• RemittancesResearchinKenya,TanzaniaandUganda,2005• FeasibilityStudyonMigrationandDevelopmentInitiativesforZambiaandAn-

gola,2005,resultspublishedinMRS21.• ResearchonZimbabweanNationalsintheUKandSouthAfrica,IOMLondon,

2004• RemittancesSurveyandResearchColombianRemittances(Remesas en Colombia

Desarrallo y Marco legal),2004• National and Household Survey on Family Remittances in Guatemala, IOM Gua-NationalandHouseholdSurveyonFamilyRemittancesinGuatemala,IOMGua-

temala2004• EnhancingtheDevelopmentImpactofMigrantRemittancesTajikistan,IOMand

UNDP2004

Policy advice

• NationalActionPlanonMigration,February2005,IOMAlbania• InstitutionalizingDiasporaLinkage:TheEmigrantBangladeshi in theUKand

USA,February2004,MinistryofExpatriatesWelfareandOverseasEmploymentandIOMDhaka

Capacity building

• Integrated Migration Information System IMIS 2001. This capacity-buildingproject, fundedby thegovernmentof Italy,carriedout inpartnershipwith theMinistry of Manpower and Emigration in Egypt, offers practical solutions insomekeyareasofthelabourmigrationprocess.Amongothers,thesystemaimstofacilitateselectivelabourmigrationprogrammesforbothsendingandreceivingcountries,andtoattractmigrantremittancesandmigrantinvestmentstothehomecountry.

• StrengtheningMigrationManagementCapacitiesinBangladeshandSriLanka,2001,engagingdiasporasinlocaldevelopment.

��

Other

Compensationprogrammes–AsoneofthepartnerorganizationsoftheGermanFoundation“Remembrance,ResponsibilityandFuture”,theInternationalOrgan-izationforMigrationcompletedin2005thefinalpaymentstomorethan80,000survivingvictimsofslaveandforcedlabourundertheNaziregime.TherecipientsofthepaymentsresidemainlyinPoland,theCzechRepublicandSlovenia,butalsoinmanyothercountries,includingGermany,IsraelandtheUnitedStates.

Special IOM diaspora websites

http://www.iom.int/africandiaspora/default.htmhttp://www.ethiopiandiaspora.info/introduction.asphttp://www.iom-rqa.orghttp://www.iraq-iri.org/http://www.emigration.gov.eg>http://www.belgium.iom.int/InternationalConference/index.htm.

��

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2005 “CountingimmigrantsandexpatriatesinOECDcountries:Anewperspective”,DumontChristophe&LemaîtreGeorges,DELSA.

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��

iOm puBliCATiONS ANd STudiES

Ammassari,S.,R.Black,CentreforMigrationResearch,SussexUniversityUK 2002 “Harnessing the potential of Migration and Return to promote development”,

Migration and Research Series,(MRS)5,IOM.Ammassari,S. 2005 “Migrationanddevelopment:Newstrategicoutlooksandpracticalwaysforward:

ThecasesofAngolaandZambia”,Migration Research Series,(MRS)21,IOM.Bloch,A. 2004 The“developmentpotentialofZimbabweansinthediasporas,Migration Research

Series,(MRS)17,IOM.Bloch,A.,andG.Atfield 2002 “Professional capacity of nationals from Somali regions in Britain”, Report to

RefugeeActionandIOM,GoldsmithCollegeUniversityofLondon,May.DeBruyn,T.,HogerInstituutvoordearbeid,KatoloekeUniversiteiit,Leiden 2005 “DynamicsofremittanceutilizationinBangladesh”,forIOMDhaka;Migration

Research Series,(MRS)18,IOM.DeBruynT.,andJ.Wets 2006 “RemittancesintheGreatLakesRegion”,Migration Research Series,(MRS)25.DeshingkarP.,andS.Grimm,OverseasDevelopmentInstitute 2005 “Internalmigrationanddevelopment:aglobalperspective”,Migration Research

Series,(MRS)19,IOM.FarrantM.,A.MacDonald,andD.Sriskandarajah 2006 “Migration and development: Opportunities and challenges for policymakers”,

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theHagueProcess.Hansen,P.,DanishInstituteforDevelopmentStudies 2004 “Migrantremittancesasadevelopmenttool:thecaseofSomaliland”,Migration

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2003 “Linkagesbetweenbraindrain,labourmigrationandremittancesinAfrica”,Chapter12,inWorld Migration 2003.

��

2003 “MigrantremittancesintheAmericas,trendsandpolicyoptionsforRCMcountries”,BrunsonMcKinley,DirectorGeneral,IOM.

2004 International Legal Norms and Migration. 2004 “Towards an IOMstrategy:migration anddevelopment”, IOMCouncil,Room

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(“National Survey on the Impact of Family Remittances on GuatemalanHouseholds”),IOMGuatemala.

2005 Migration, Development and Poverty Reduction in Asia. 2005 “Themilleniumdevelopmentgoalsandmigration”,Migration Research Series,

(MRS)20,IOM. 2005 ResearchManual,LegalNorms 2005 Essentials of Migration Management, A Guide for Policy makers and Practitioners,

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2005 Officeof the InspectorGeneral,EvaluationofMIDAconcept andMIDA Italyprogramme.

2005 Estudio sobre Migración Internacional y Remesas en Colombia: Memorias del Seminario Migración Internacional, el Impacto y las Tendencias de las Remesas en Colombia,preparedbyIOMColombia.

2005 World Migration, Costs and Benefits of International Migration. 2005 Labour Migration in Asia: Protection of Migrant Workers, Supporting Services

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2006 “Towardsdevelopment-friendlymigrationpoliciesandprogrammes:Someconcreteexamples from European member states”, Background note prepared by theResearchandPublicationsDivision,ConferenceonMigrationandDevelopment,Brussels,March.

2006 IOM’s input to the The High-Level Dialogue on International Migration andDevelopment(HLD)policypaperand“KeyIOMmessages”.

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�0

IOM,WorldHealthOrganization(WHO)andCentres forDiseasecontrolandprevention(CDC) 2005 International Dialogue on Migration,No.6,“Healthandmigration:Bridgingthe

gap”.Murphy,R. 2006 “DomesticmigrantremittancesinChina:Distribution,channelsandlivelihoods”,

UniversityofBristol,Migration Research Series,(MRS)24,IOM.Nega Berhnu, Taddese Kassahun, Nuru Seid and Mamma Zekerias, Ethiopian EconomicAssociation/EthiopianEconomicPolicyResearchInstitute 2004 UsingresourcesfrommigrantsfordevelopmentinEthiopia,Workshop“Mobilization

andutilizationofdiasporasresourcesfordevelopmentinEthiopia”,IOM.Nyberg-Sorensen,N.,N.VanHear,andP.Engberg-Pedersen 2002 “Migrationanddevelopmentnexus”,Migration and Research Series,(MRS)8,

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GovernmentofBangladeshMinistryofExpatriatesandOverseasEmployment.

�1

ENdNOTES

1. Mainstreaming Migration into Development Agendas, No.8,Mainstreaming Migration into Development Agendas, No.8, International Dialogue on Migration,IOM,2005

2. World Migration Report, Costs and Benefits of International Migration,IOM2005.

3. Clifford,1994;Cohen,1997;Axel,2001.4. Barré, R., V. Hernandez, J.B. Meyer, and D. Vinck,Barré, R., V. Hernandez, J.B. Meyer, and D. Vinck,é,R.,V.Hernandez,J.B.Meyer,andD.Vinck,Diasporas scientifiques

/Scientific diasporas,IRDEditions,Paris,2003.5. GCIM No. 6, “The transnational turn in migration studies”, by Levitt andGCIM No. 6, “The transnational turn in migration studies”, by Levitt and

Nyborg-SorensenN.,October2004;SmithandGuarnizo,1998.6. “Working together with the diaspora”, GTZ and ILO Berlin, May 2004; Brain“Workingtogetherwiththediaspora”,GTZandILOBerlin,May2004;Brain

Gain,TheInstruments,NUFFIC,theHague,September2004;InternationalForumforEthiopiansLivingAbroad,PeopletoPeopleandEthiopiaSecretariatJan.2005;StakeholderRoundtableEngagingtheAfricanDiasporaInAfrica’sCapacityBuildingEfforts,Canada2004, IDRCandAHEAD; InternationalConferenceonCapeVerdianMigrationandDiaspora,2005.

7. Lapointe M., “Diasporas in Caribbean development”, Report of the Inter-Lapointe M., “Diasporas in Caribbean development”, Report of the Inter-AmericanDialogueandtheWorldBank,2004;HugoG.,Australia’s Diaspora,CEDA,2003;Dharam,G.,“Diasporasanddevelopment:thecaseofKenya”,Global Migration Perspectives,GCIMNo.10,October2004.

8. Caglar, O., and M. Schiff (Eds.),Caglar,O., andM.Schiff (Eds.), International Migration, Remittances and the Brain Drain, World Bank, 2005; OECD, Migration, Remittances and Development,2005;AsianDevelopmentBank,Enhancing the Efficiency of Overseas Workers Remittances,2004;WorldBank,Global Economic Prospects, Economic Implications of Remittances and Migration,2005.

9. Commander, S.,Commander,S.,The Brain Drain: Curse or Boon?,2002;Bach,S.,International Migration of Health Workers, ILO, 2003; Mensaj, K., The Skills Drain of Professionals from the Developing World,2005.

10. Buchan, J., D. Dovolo, “International recruitment of health workers to the UK:Buchan,J.,D.Dovolo,“InternationalrecruitmentofhealthworkerstotheUK:aReporttoDFID”,HealthResearchCentre,2004.

11. Skeldon, R.,Skeldon,R.,Migration and Development: A Global Perspective,UK,1997;Newland, K., Migration and Development, Migration Policy Institute;“Migrationanddevelopmentnexus”,Migration and Research Series,MRSMRSNo.8, IOM, 2002; World Bank and IOM (forthcoming),IOM,2002; World Bank and IOM (forthcoming),;World Bank and IOM (forthcoming),WorldBankandIOM(forthcoming),Development Friendly Migration Policies: A Survey in Countries of Origin and Destination,2006.

12. Johnson, B., and S. Sedaca, “Diasporas, emigrés and development, economicJohnson,B.,andS.Sedaca,“Diasporas,emigrésanddevelopment,economiclinkages and programmatic responses”, US Agency for InternationalDevelopment(USAID)andTradeEnhancementfortheServicesSector(TESS)project.

�2

13. “Diasporas and economic development: State of knowledge”, Report toDiasporas and economic development: State of knowledge”, Report totheWorldBank,Washington,D.C., Institute for theStudyof InternationalMigration,Georgetown University.

14. Newland, K., P. Erin,Newland,K.,P.Erin,Beyond Remittances: The Role of Diaspora in Poverty Reduction in their Countries of Origin,2004.

15. De Haas, H., De Haas, H., Engaging Diasporas: How Governments and Development Agencies can Support Diaspora Involvement in the Development of Origin Countries,InternationalMigrationInstitute,2006.

16. European Commission, 2005, Communication from the Commission on, 2005, Communication from the Commission onMigration and Development: Some concrete orientations; IOM MigrationandDevelopmentWorkshop,Geneva,February2005, IOM;Migration andDevelopmentConferenceconvenedbytheBelgiangovernment,theEuropeanCommissionandtheWorldBank,,Brussels,March2006.

17. The House of Commons, United Kingdom, 2003, “Migration and development:TheHouse of Commons, United Kingdom, 2003, “Migration and development:HouseofCommons,UnitedKingdom,2003,“Migrationanddevelopment:Howtomakemigrationworkforpovertyreduction”,2003-2004;theHouse ofHouseofRepresentatives,theNetherlands,PolicyMemorandum2003-2004.

18. Round Table on Migration and Development, UNFPA, New York, 2004;Round Table on Migration and Development, UNFPA, New York, 2004;Workshop on Policy Coherence for Development, German Marshall Fund/NetherlandsGovernment,2004;MigrationandIntegrationforDevelopment:FromPolicy toPractice,Center for InternationalMigrationand Integration(CIMI), Jerusalem, 2004; Belgian Government, EC, IOM, “Migration andDevelopment”2006,Brussels.

19. Glossary on Migrationdefinesdiasporasas“peopleorethnicpopulationthatleavetheirtraditionalethnichomelands,beingdispersedthroughoutotherpartsoftheworld,IOM,2004.

20. “Migration and development: some concrete recommendations”, Commission“Migrationanddevelopment:someconcreterecommendations”,CommissionoftheEuropeanCommunitiesCommunication,September2005,seeBox2.

21. I.e. scattering over two or more destination countries; a relationship to an actualI.e. scattering over two or more destination countries; a relationship to an actualI.e.scatteringovertwoormoredestinationcountries;arelationshiptoanactualorperceivedhomeland;awarenessofagroupidentity;makingallowancesformultipleidentities;existenceovertwogenerationsatleast.

22. IOM Integrated Migration Information System project, Egypt 2001-2003;2003-2004.

23. See IOM surveys on Zimbabweans (2004) and Somalis (2002) in the UK.SeeIOMsurveysonZimbabweans(2004)andSomalis(2002)intheUK.24. Typologie des OSIM, 2000 Paris, GREM, Institut Panos, Minist�re des affairesTypologiedesOSIM,2000Paris,GREM,InstitutPanos,Minist�redesaffaires

étrang�res,inWorldMigrationReport,IOM,2005.25. Bloch A., and G. Atfield, Report to the Refugee Action and IOM, 2002.BlochA.,andG.Atfield,ReporttotheRefugeeActionandIOM,2002.26. IOM,IOM,Institutionalizing Diaspora Linkages: the Emigrant Bangladeshis in the

UK and USA,2004.27. Bloch A., IOM. MRS 17, 2005.BlochA.,IOM.MRS17,2005.28. Bloch A., and G. Atfield, Report to Refugee Action and IOM, May 2002. BlochA.,andG.Atfield,ReporttoRefugeeActionandIOM,May2002.

��

29. April 2006, Jonkoping University, Sweden, with SIDA and NUITEK support April2006,JonkopingUniversity,Sweden,withSIDAandNUITEKsupporton“Diasporaaswealthcreators”.

30. IOM MIDA Italy Programme, Mobilization of Senegalese Expatriates and ofIOMMIDAItalyProgramme,MobilizationofSenegaleseExpatriatesandoftheirHostingCommunitiesinItaly,2004.

31. Assembly Debate, 3 October 2005 (25th Sitting), see Doc. 10654, Report ofAssemblyDebate,3October2005(25thSitting),seeDoc.10654,ReportoftheCommitteeonMigration,RefugeesandPopulation,RapporteurMrSalles.TextadoptedbytheAssemblyon3October2005.

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��

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IOM Migration Research Series (MRS)

Editor: Frank LaczkoChief, Research and Publications DivisionInternational Organization for Migration17 route des MorillonsC.P. 71 CH-1211 Geneva 19SwitzerlandTel: +41.22.717 91 11E-mail: publications@iom.int

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Diasporas are dynamic, social, economic and political players in their home and destina-tion countries. They may act independently, in collaboration with and, at times, in spite of governments. Diasporas generally have not waited for governments to mobilize them, yet public initiatives targeting diasporas have burgeoned in recent years, raising questions about the interaction between governments and diasporas and the role of policy.

This publication explores different challenges posed to home and host country governments engaging with their diasporas for development purposes. How to define diasporas? How to gather data on diasporas? How to incorporate diaspora contributions into development strategies? How to identify most relevant partners within the diasporas? What incentives are conducive to diaspora contributions? What resources are available within diasporas and how can their impact on development be maximized? What is the role for policy?

These are some of the questions raised in this publication, based on findings from data and studies in this field, combined with original knowledge extracted from IOM research and operational experience. In its conclusion, the report sketches out a diaspora policy roadmap, intentioned to assist decision makers eager to collaborate with their diasporas for development purposes.

The heterogeneity of the individuals within diasporas and the diversity of goals pursued by them individually or collectively are some of the greatest challenges for policy. Without a favourable policy environment, supporting structures and mutual trust, diasporas’ development potential might be curtailed.

IOM • OIM

Engaging Diasporas as Development Partners for Home and Destination Countries: Challenges for Policymakers

No. 26

ISSN 1607-338X

Also available online at:http://www.iom.int

MRS

26

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