By Clive Mutame SiachiyakoToday’s constantly changing business and economic environments require development strategies that embrace both the breadth and depth of those dynamics to strength national development. However, the velocity at which the changes are moving has caught many economies off-guard. This has often been exasperated by some policy oversight.
Similarly, Zambians working abroad have been seen in terms of brain drain for decades. As a result, their contributions to national development have been overlooked and unrecognised. The added value in terms of insights, knowledge of local conditions and networks, cultural experience, empathy and sensitiveness, intellectual capacities and skills that they gain and subsequently could offer to the enrichment of the Zambian economy has been thus relatively substantial.
However, with the passing of the clause on dual citizenship by the National Constitutional Conference (NCC), government has tasked Zambia Development Agency and other relevant institutions to formulate a national framework to the engage Zambians living abroad to contribute to national development. Government plans to engage its nationals abroad in monitoring investment dynamics and help in promoting Zambia’s investment opportunities.
Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) was last year tasked to initiate the development of the concept paper that would be used to secure public support for the initiative of engaging the Diaspora to national development through remittance and shaping the development direction of the country based on their gained exposure to best development practices.
The formulation of the policy in being done in collaboration with the Bank of Zambia, Ministry of Finance and National Planning, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Education as well as the Ministry of Science and Technology. The role of the Bank of Zambia is to develop an effective remittance system to create a pool of diaspora-driven national capital. The policy also mandates Ministry of Finance and National Planning to review the taxation system and address the diaspora requirements.
Government further created a Diaspora Desk at State House. The Desk facilitated the creation of a Zambia Diaspora Connect Initiative. The initiative provides a “one stop” station for members of the diaspora in interfacing with government and other entities back in Zambia over issues specific to national development. The window provides institutional capacity to Zambians abroad by bringing them together and collective contribute their proficiency to economic development.
To this effect, Zambians abroad have formed a Zambia Diaspora Connect (ZDC) Business network which presents Zambian economic interests at the World Bank’s African Diaspora Open House. ZDC Chairman Mr. Musaba Chailunga has indicated that one of the objectives of African Diaspora Open House and ZDC were to initiate projects that could be driven back home to ignite economic growth. It helps individual Zambians in the diaspora to identify roles they can play in enhancing Zambia’s development.
As part of the ZDC’s initiative to help close the skills gap between the decision makers in Zambia, be it government and/or Business, it will be offering a series of training courses on explorative tools for monitoring investment dynamics on the international frontier. The training initiatives are composed of the Human Capital Thematic Group, whose main role is to provide resources that can be drawn upon for policy advisory and consultancy.
Back in Zambia, institutions facilitating the engagement Zambians abroad into national development are repositioning themselves on how to develop systems that meet the diaspora dimension. They have proposed a framework which is being facilitated by the Bank of Zambia, Ministry of Finance and National Planning, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Education as well as the Ministry of Science and Technology. The role of the Bank of Zambia is developing an effective remittance system, while the ministry finance is tasked to review the taxation system to address the diaspora requirement and prepare booklets on such taxation system for distribution through various networks.
Under that framework, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is mandated to educate Zambians living abroad on what this initiative is all about and to encourage them to save with banks in Zambia. The Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Science and Technology on the other strand are addressing their training systems to include training for the international labour market in order to enhance the effectiveness of the diaspora policy initiative.
The diaspora development framework initiative is necessitated by the ZDC members who have been inquiring on how they can facilitate the exploitation of Zambia’s investment opportunities in the country. The initiative has been also dictated by economic dynamics which demand inclusive development approaches to meet the daunting poverty levels and development challenges.
Most African governments have realised the massive economic potential their citizens abroad possess. The framework is thus one way of engaging Zambians in the diaspora to take part in national development matters and encourage them to invest back home.
specific projects. This strategy is meant to improve infrastructure development and broadening the country’s revenue base. Its net economic benefits will be more job opportunities and wealth creation and meaningful poverty reduction.The ZDA diaspora concept paper notes that Zambians living abroad are important partners in the development process. “They are numerous and many of them are highly skilled. Some have capital to invest which can diffused into the national economy stimulate economic growth once the policy is effected.
Zambians abroad are part of a large-scale, worldwide diaspora or transnational community which is becoming one of the major global forces in shaping economic directions and trends in the 21st century. They have often influenced Western and Eastern government policy-makers in their strategies and activities implemented towards the country.
The Zambian diaspora build-up social, economic and political bridges that channel wealth, information, innovative ideas, intellectual capacities, skills and creative business practices from America, Europe and Asia. This is the highly-skilled resource the diaspora policy aims to tap to enhance national development. Such skills are cardinal to the enhancement of investment and export promotion and market development strategies for Zambia.
Research has shown that diaspora contribution to development in homelands is second to FDI in countries where there are effective systems integrated the diaspora into national development. Thus, joining forces with the diaspora in championing development is an important ingredient to meeting national development targets that the ZDA and partners are blending into economic development.
Therefore, as young people, we should remember to plant back home. Let's invest to create our own greener pasture back home.
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