The Nigeria Diaspora commission headed by Hon Abike Dabiri Erewa held a joint world press conference to announce the GLOBAL AFRICAN DIASPORA SYMPOSIUM (GADS) scheduled to hold on the 27th and 28th of April in Abuja.
Speaking at the conference Hon Abike commended Africans in diaspora for representing the continent in a positive light by excelling in their fields and consistently proving that Africans are competent, vibrant and talented people.
She stated that the GLOBAL DIASPORA SYMPOSIUM was inspired by the Global diaspora summit in 2012 and the African Global diaspora summit of 2021, in line with the theme which is “ Building stronger connections between Africa and the global diaspora” , the symposium would give Africa the chance to engage with its diaspora and work together towards the development of the continent and the optimization of Africa and the diaspora’s resources towards building a network that ensures continued growth and sustainable development.
The objectives of the Symposium are to:
i. Create an interface for networking among African and other Diaspora all over the world.
ii. Promote the implementation and institutionalising of Pan-Africanism at the UN through the celebration of the “International Decade for People of African Descent”.
iii. Build bridges between Africa and the Diaspora by deepening relations between the AU, CARICOM, OACPS, and the SPF, among others in realising the Diaspora as the sixth region of the AU.
iv. Explore and engage the contributions of Diaspora skills, particularly in scientific knowledge and technology transfer.
v. Mobilise Diaspora savings and Diaspora philanthropic contributions and harness migration, remittances and Diaspora contributions for suitable development.
vi. Enhance participation of the Diaspora in Africa’s development process to support the development of the roadmap for the Diaspora as the sixth region of Africa towards the attainment of AU’s Agenda 2063.
vii. Advocate policy and practice changes conducive for more effective integration of Diaspora-led actions in the national development plans of their countries of origin through organisations such as the OACPS
Speaking at the event virtually from Sydney, Australia, Prof Chika Anyanwu spoke of a proud decolonized africa stating that the diasporans were a bridge between Africa and the world for building the continent. and the joint effort of Africans at home and in diaspora was neccesary to build the Africa we want.
Dr Bashiru Obasekola described the upcoming event as an opportunity for networking and a step towards investment and boosting relationships between home and the diaspora .
The DG directorate of technical cooperation in Africa stated that the purpose of these efforts was to continue from where festac 77 stopped and that the event would bring together Nigerians from around the world.
He stated that it would encourage diasporans to come back home and intergrate and that integration was necessary to create a network that would allow them fully explore opportunities.
He stated that diasporans excel greatly so it’s our opportunity to tap into that stating that other races build successful businesses here because they connect and pool support from back home.
The programme will take place on April 27-28, 2023, at the Rotunda Hall, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Abuja, Nigeria.
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