Columnists
Harness Kenyan diaspora resources and goodwill to grow the economy
Thursday June 22 2023
While remittances have helped to meet financial, food, education, and health needs, much can be done to better tap into these remittances for Kenya’s development.. FILE PHOTO | SHUTTERSTOCK
Kenya’s diaspora remittances, investment and expertise are vital for Kenya’s growth. It is estimated about four million Kenyans live and work abroad, most of them in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Uganda, Australia and countries in Europe.
Despite the vast geographical distances, the different time zones and cultural activities, the Kenyan diaspora has always remained attached to their roots. The amount of money they send back home to support their families and friends – also known as remittances – has been steadily rising in the last 10 to 15 years.
According to recent Central Bank of Kenya’s report, the country’s diaspora remittances rose by 8.34 percent to $4.027 billion in 2022, closing in on exports, from key economic sectors such as tourism, tea and horticulture, which brought in $5.77 billion worth of foreign currency.
While remittances have helped to meet financial, food, education, and health needs, as well as serve as countercyclical sources of finance and social protection, much can be done to better tap into these remittances for Kenya’s development.
If we harness diaspora effectively and channel their efforts and resources to productive avenues, Kenya will be a country to reckon with. For that reason, the government must pay attention and assist Kenya’s overseas, and provide job connections, and opportunities to invest in trade.
It is encouraging that a State department has been set up to serve those in the diaspora. The department should to give policy priority to the specific needs of the diaspora, as well as expand the investment opportunities for them through special incentives.
We must put in place programmes that support Kenyans in diaspora to connect back to the country, invest, and provide long and short-term human capital to strategic sectors to drive Kenya’s economic growth.
Kenya can learn from India, the fastest growing large economy in the world, that has been able to tap into its diaspora talent pool. India has benefited from the diaspora because the country engages the group, and has implemented policies to recognise their roles and given them incentives to invest and reduce the costs of doing business.
The writer is a public policy analyst. [email protected]
