DTEP: It is possible to imagine a ‘global Nigeria’-Participants

Oru Leonard

Participants and Experts at the Three-Day Diaspora Technical Exchange Programme in United Kingdom have agreed that an increasingly independent global economy requires a deliberate effort to reach out beyond national borders to engage “global citizens and friends”. And that it is possible to imagine a ” global Nigeria”.

They also argued that connecting with the Nigerian Diaspora through trust building is one sure way of creating economic prosperity and social impacts for the homeland.

This was part of the submission made at the end of the Technical exchange programme for delegates from Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) facilitated by African Foundation for Development (AFFORD) and sponsored by the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD).

According to a statement signed by Gabriel Odu, the Media, Public Relations and Protocol Unit of NiDCOM, the Diaspora Technical Exchange Programme had a peep at Political Capital, Cultural Capital, Intellectual and Skill Capital, Social, Financial and Time Capital as strategic instruments for constructive engagements with the Diaspora for meaningful National development.

Interestingly too, Participants and Experts delved into the Diaspora Phenomenon: who is your Diaspora?

The African Union Declaration as contained in the Draft National Diaspora Policy, espouses that a Diaspora could be an individual with ancestral or historical ties who willingly identifies and contributes to the development of country of Origin.

The Diaspora Technical Exchange Programme ended with two field visits to the British Museum though with African content (artefacts) and the United Kingdom Parliament. These visits were eye openers for delegates to strategically engage Diaspora Nigerians, for instance, the First Black Female MP Chi Onwurah of Newcastle to facilitate trade and investment opportunities, skills and knowledge transfer now known as brain circulation back home to Nigeria.