The Role of the Diaspora.
Somaliland is the least populated country in Africa in terms of its size, with a population of 4 million inhabitants. It is also one of the most globalised nation on earth as 600.000 Diaspora live abroad, in 41 countries in Africa, Asia, EU and North America. The Diaspora are the backbone of Somaliland’s economy, contributing more than $800 million a year, nearly three times the Government’s annual budget and 5 times more than International development aid. From Washington D-C to Cardiff City Council Somalilanders campaign the cause of their people – The “ Re-recognition of Somaliland ”.
Diaspora and development : lessons from Somaliland
Matthew MacGregor *, Fawzia Yusuf H. Adam and Saad Ali Shire The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, 160 Packard Avenue, Medford, Massachusetts 02155-7082, USA.
* Corresponding author Abstract : The success of the University of Hargeisa in Somaliland demonstrates how the flow of skilled migrants from the developing to the developed world – once viewed merely as brain ‘drain’ – may in fact be more accurately described as an imperfect circular flow of skilled workers, knowledge, finance, and development. The skilled Diaspora can invoke its capabilities, networks, and access to financial resources to catalyse economic development in the home country. In Somaliland, these factors culminated in the creation of a knowledge-based institution that has the potential to substantially contribute to the development of local human capital.
Keywords: Diaspora; development; brain drain; brain gain; migration; Somaliland; University of Hargeisa; migrant associations; remittances; economic development; knowledge transfer; skilled emigrants. Reference to this paper should be made as follows: MacGregor, M., Adam, F.Y.H. and Shire, S.A. (2008) ‘Diaspora and development: lessons from Somaliland’, Int.J. Technology and Globalisation, Vol 4,No.3,pp. 238–255 Read More
Somaliland main Diaspora Organisations
East Africa Development ‘ EAD ’ is registered in the UK and East African states, with its head office located in London. EAD is a Non-Governmental Organisation that supports the development of communities in some of the most economically challenged regions eastafricadevelopment.org
SSE stands for Somaliland Societies in Europe and it is a network of organizations representing about 45 Somaliland community organizations from 11 European countries. SSE is a voice for Somaliland organizations in Europe since 2001 www.sseuro.com
