The African diaspora’s public participation in policy-making concerning Africa

Abstract

This paper examines the involvement of African diaspora organizations in Dutch and European policy-making concerning Africa. It addresses the extent to which their inclusion or exclusion in public policy processes in their destination countries is likely to impact (development) policies relating to their countries of origin. The findings are based on a collaborative research project that involved knowledge institutes and African diaspora organizations in the Netherlands. The data consist of 35 in-depth interviews with members of the African diaspora and 2 workshops on African diaspora issues. The paper moves beyond conceptualisations of diaspora as transnational aid workers and promotes an understanding of the African diaspora's involvement as a form of rights-based civic participation. The research found that the African diaspora can share unique insights to improve the quality of policy, but that representative bodies are needed. If the diaspora are involved in policymaking, it is through passive participation. However, the diaspora do have an aspiration for engagement through self-mobilization, and functional and interactive participation. The study further revealed that the diaspora's dual relationship with home and host countries offers an opportunity for policy-makers to explore mutual benefits for both Europe and the African continent.

On the Sustainable Economic Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa: Do Remittances, Human Capital Flight, and Brain Drain Matter?

“…The bank has predicted remittance flows to low-and middle-income nations at over $550 billion, up from $529 in 2018 [12]. Remittances from the diaspora play a critical role in sustaining local livelihoods, community development projects, innovation, and entrepreneurship [13,14]. For example, Ugandan, Rwandan, Guinean, Seychelles, and South African imports all rely heavily on remittances, which range from 18% in Uganda to 1% in South Africa [15].…”

Bolstering African strategy for sustainable development and its diaspora's influence on African development renaissance

“…It estimated the remittance flows to low-and middleincome countries to be about 550 USD billion, from the previous 529 USD billion in 2018 (The World Bank, 2019). Diaspora remittances have an important role in supporting local livelihoods, community development projects, innovations and entrepreneurship (Norglo et al, 2016;Rodima-Taylor, 2015). International remittances have become a major source of foreign currencies for most African countries, with private remittances constituting the largest source of international financial flows to Africa (African Economic Outlook, 2015;…”

“…Human beings have long used migration as a means of survival and renewal and in their search for new beginnings; this indeed, paved way for the term 'diaspora', meaning "dispersed people". Diasporas are often influenced, by events in their country of origin (Norglo et al, 2016). a wealth of literatures on the subject Diaspora highlights the contributions of Diasporas towards poverty reduction and overall development projects in their country of origin through remittances (Black & Sward, 2009;De Haas, 2012;Kamau & Kimenyi, 2013;Newland & Patrick, 2004).…”

Village Elders’ Participation in Public Governance in Kenya: A Phenomenological Study

“…It also strengthens the state by legitimizing governmental actions and democratic governance (The Republic of Kenya, 2018), as well as influencing budget implementation (Awire & Nyakwara, 2019). According to Norglo et al (2016), public participation improves policies, participants' capacity and social capital as well as providing legitimacy to public institutions' decisions. Moreover, it promotes sustainable decisions by taking into account the needs and interests of all the participants, provides information to participants on their need to participate, and communicate how their input affected the decision (The Republic of Kenya, 2016).…”