Focus on Africa: Connecting the Diaspora

Dr BanjokoAfricaRecruit

Council for Education in the Commonwealth 2005 Annual

Conference - Keeping the Commonwealth Connected

27th June 2005

Who we areAfricaRecruit is a programme of AU/NEPAD,Commonwealth &CBC connecting the

Diaspora to Africa

Channel resources (skills or investment) through secondary or tertiary avenues, while they remain in the Diaspora

Facilitate & enable capacity building using the Diaspora asone of the main drivers.

Diaspora are a very valuable resource and powerful force or tool forrebuilding their country

Other parts of Europe, North America, Asia and within Africa

Commission for Africa (CFA) 3 recommendations on investing in capacity building e.g. skilled professionals

African DiasporaThe African community in the Diaspora has a major role to play in the new task of transformation, reconstruction and regeneration. Their experience, values, knowledge and creativity are very much required to join with home-based efforts to ensure the overall improvement in the African condition. Rebuilding Africa is a collective challenge.

“ I came to appreciate the sheer quantum and quantity of Nigerians resident abroad and working as professionals and academics, whose expertise in my view could be harnessed for national development”

H.E President Olusegun Obasanjo –Chairperson African Union

Human Capital- Connecting skills

Intellectual flight-The United Nations calls brain drain one of the greatest threats to economic development in sub-Saharan Africa.

In many ways, the loss of skills could be counted as Africa’s foreign assistance to the developed world!

Departures…

Between 1985 -1990

Africa lost over 60,000 middle-level and high-level managers.

About 23,000 lecturers/yr from African universities emigrate

Every year 23,000 graduates leave Africa

The emigration of technically skilled people has left 20,000 scientists and engineers in Africa, servicing a population of about 600m

One of Africa’s greatest offshore asset

Approximately 40% of all African professionals have left the continent's shoresover the decades (20,000/yr in the 90’s)

Approximately 3.8 millions Africans live outside Africa mainly in Europe and North America. Over 50% boast tertiary and or postgraduate qualifications.

AfricaRecruit survey in 2003 showed that over half of the 1st generation Diaspora respondents were educatedin Africa

Approximately 75% had postgraduate qualifications

54% left Africa for career and professional developments

67% would like to return to Africa within the next 0-5 years

The lack of available managerial, technical and professional skills is a very practical constraint on investment and growth. “Without the right skills, the jobs, wealth and improved social services envisaged by NEPAD cannot be created”. The Labour market is a calibration index of national development

“The numerous current initiatives in Africa require high-level scientific technological and managerial skills. The question is where are the skills going to come from. Our answer is that from Africans in the Diaspora and the rest of the world. The training of new graduates will take at least a generation or longer but the skills are needed now if further deepening of poverty and marginlisation is to be reverse. This is the rationale for AfricaRecruit project” Professor Wiseman Nkuhlu, Chairman New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Steering Committee March 2005

Impact and way forward

CFA recommendations- providing relevant skills, funding for regional networks and the development of more appropriate curriculum

Human Capital breakdown of the 46,703 CV’s at Findajobinafrica.com

0%

5%

10%15%

20%

25%Bu

rund

i

Cam

eroo

n

Egyp

t

Mor

rocc

o

Sene

gal

Ethi

opia

Tanz

ania

Uga

nda

Egyp

t

Zam

bia

Gha

na

Zim

babw

e

Keny

a

Sout

h

Oth

er

Nig

eria

Expa

trate

s

Country /ies

The database has grown from an average of 7,000 a year in 99/00 to

10,000/yr in 03/04

AfricaRecruitBuilding

framework

Findajobinafrica facilitating access

attracting the best

Achieving the balance - turning the tide

Human Capital

Develop &

Retain

Attract & reclaim

500 Diaspora

in a year HR ro

undtables

best practic

e

implementatio

n

Recommendations

for polic

y Many Africans retained in Africamobility of skills

What is the Process...• Skills Mapping - using innovative technology

• Communication programme on/offline - seminars; road shows and outreach

• Channel and Direct - Strategic alliances with all stakeholders

• Transfer and retain within Africa

• Build on the skills in quality and quantity - Valued asset

• Foster a debate on how to contribute to a Africa -wide skills strategy

• Work on creating an enabling environment that will change attitudes and perspectives of the Diaspora to working in Africa

• Provide a framework that will attract investment and create “attractive jobs”

• Skill transfer including opportunities to self-employed African’s

• Develop and implement sound policies

• Provide incentives encourage transparency and good governance

• Adopt best practicesCFA recommendation - Africa’s health workforce should be tripled through training of an additional 1 million over a decade

Framework..

Africans in Africa- joint partnership between colleges, universities and business

Africans in the Diaspora - education and professionals build links to transfer and build

Review changes

Dissemination

Vision

AfricaRecruit

Understanding the HR

perspectives

Understand the structures and

systems

Identifying best practices

RecruitBuild skillsTransfer skills

                            Sabbaticals

Mentorship

Consultancy

Interims

Interns

Exchange

Voluntary

Permanent

“There is always a way….”

ADDED VALUE

Repatriate –Expatriate

Skills …. Skills

Outcomes so far

Indicators• Increasing number of Diaspora

returnees, enquiries and web stats• Increasing number of open jobs

for recruitment• Increasing number of employers

adopting strategy enabling them to target local and international candidates

• Increasing calls for recruitment fairs

• Decreasing reliance on experts• More organisations investing in

workforce• More organisations adopting best

practice

RecommendationsPolicy level• Mobility of critical skills within

Africa• Development of ToR for investors

to reflect building and transfer of skills

Partnership level for AfricaRecruit• Develop extensive skills database• Africa Virtual HR Forum• Facilitate Africa Skills

Development agency• Virtual HR-Recruitment forum • Mobilise more Diaspora using ICT

Financial Capital

The Africans in the Diaspora merit increasing attention they are a source of investment funding, expertise and a confidence building

measure of great importance

Show me the money

• Global figures over $300 billion (2003) second largest source behind FDI & a more stable than private capital and is expected to rise.

• Africa approximately 15% ( $45 billion of the total global remittance flow). 27% of the GDP for some African countries.

• On average $300 US dollars only 6% invested.

International Development select committee UK, enquiry concluded “well-managed migration is hugely important, economically and politically, because of the links it establishes between countries”. If remittances is invested well, these funds could play a major role in reducing poverty.

The development potential of remittances must be secured by encouraging remittances, reducing the costs of sending money home, and improving the investment climate for remittances in developing countries.

Financial Capital- at micro level

Average amount sent home per month US dollars

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

under 300dollars a month

300-500 600-1000 over 1000

Amount per month

Per

cent

age

brea

kdow

n

What the money used for?

Source of employment

0%10%20%30%40%

Communityor Social

CapitalMarkets

Real Estate Setting upBusiness

Others

Percentage breakdow n of completed questionnaires

Wha

t

Methods of transfer

Africans high reliance on community infrastructure-

not captured by off icial data

010203040

Cash InternationalMoneytransfer

FinancialInstitutions

Others

How

Per

cent

age

Bre

akdo

wn

Barter services and products

Obstacles preventing investmentMain Obstacles to investment

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Lack oftransparency

No suitableoptions

Personal Poor or lack ofinformation

Poor or noinfrastructure

Obstacles

Bre

akdo

wn

of R

espo

nses

Most Important

Important

Least Important

Current trendsThe African Diaspora are a brand-building opportunity, key to building and projecting a new African brand a potential massive resource of funds. In some cases Africans living abroad send more money home than earned from many of the natural resources or exports from Africa. Africa Economic Summit June 2005

Ghanaians living abroad sent back US$ 800 million to the country – more than Ghana earned from cocoa or gold. "Why is the money coming back now? Because they are beginning to believe in their country, because they are beginning to see consistency of leadership, of economic environment and of political environment."

Activities…………..

London United Kingdom 12-17th September 2005

www.africadiaspora.com

Mobilise, enhance and enable Diaspora investment in Africa

Diaspora community can benefit from the numerous investment opportunities that exist overseas in trade and investments, whilst supporting the development of Africa's economy.

Harnessing Africa……...

…by connecting the Diaspora Entrepreneur

SME’s

Job creation

Service industry

Quality of life

Trade

CooperationGlobal links

Mutual partnership

Private sectorMentorship

Best practices

Transfer

Productivity

Public sector

Infrastructure

Good governance

National development

Investment

Transfer of resources

“You will never solve the problem with the mindset that created it”

Albert Einstein

Contact Details

AfricaRecruit

18 Pall Mall

London SW1 5LU

United Kingdom

E-mail: info@africarecruit.com

or info@findajobinafrica.com Websites: www.africarecruit.com

www.findajobinafrica.com www.africadiaspora.com