OBY Ezekwesili, vice president, African Region of the World Bank says Africans in Diaspora must maintain a huge dose of optimism that the African continent will grow and develop just as other continents in the near future.
Giving concluding remarks during the 2010 Second Diaspora Open House at the World Bank headquarters last week, Ezekwesili said ,“African Diaspora has no business with pessimism since the road to development is long route to travel and the continent will eventually get there.”
Encouraging those present at the African Diaspora Programme to keep hope alive, she said that the World Bank is very committed to the agenda of transforming Africa, although it is conscious of the fact that it will not happen suddenly.
Giving a brief of the recommendations of the various study groups during the one-day session of the biennial get together, the vice president participants made case for improved cooperation between the World Bank and countries in Africa. According to her, there was also a call for the adoption of information technology, creation of data base of the Diaspora and continued search for alternative energy.
Commenting on the high cost of remittances, Ezekwesili attributes it to the monopoly in the business and enjoined other Africans in Diaspora to emulate the example of Kenya where they came together to develop an alternative means of sending money to their kit and kins in Africa.
In his presentation, Shantayanan Devarajan, chief economist, Africa region of the World Bank lamented the state of the fragile countries on the continent.
The economist listed policies that can improve the state of the poor to include developing of infrastructure, especially roads. According to him, Africa has the highest transportation cost in the world, pointing out here, that findings show that it may not necessarily be due to bad roads, but due to high profit raked in by the transporters, canvassing here that regulation may be necessary.
He also pointed at poor service delivery systems across the continent, where absenteeism in schools and medical centres frustrates activities in those places.
Devarajan enjoined African countries to subscribe to the use of information technology as according to him, studies show that where this has been put to use, the results are very encouraging.
The African region of the World Bank launched the African Diaspora Programme in September 2007 focusing on supporting global Diaspora programmes and projects, partnering countries to support improvements in the enabling policy and institutional environments for engaging their Diaspora in economic and social development activities.
The programme also partner donors, countries, and the Diaspora to understand better the flow of remittances, including issues related to payment costs, and approaches to the leveraging of remittances for development.
It makes Diaspora professionals networks and hometown associations to increase knowledge sharing and transfer (brain gain) between the Diaspora and their home countries.