• Home
  • Bio
  • Media
    • Read
    • Watch/Listen
  • Speaking
  • Work with me
  • Contact

MsAfropolitan

FEMINISM. PAN-AFRICA. SOCIAL CRITICISM. DIASPORA. CULTURE.

  • feminism
  • Africa
  • Pop Culture
  • Social Criticism
  • decolonisation
  • Afropolitanism
  • seven
  • Sensuous Knowledge
    • Sensuous Knowledge references and recommended reading
    • International
    • Sensuous Knowledge news
  • Other Books
  • The MsAfropolitan Philosophy Book Club @ Waterstones

The African Diaspora: Claiming our power to make a change back home

December 20, 2012 By MsAfropolitan 2 Comments

This is a guest post by Solome Lemma

—

Before we start, it is important to recognize that what we refer to as the African diaspora is not monolithic. There are many diaspora communities with their own histories, interests, needs and opportunities.

That said let me get straight to the point. Namely that it is time to invigorate the project of mobilizing resources, skills, and voices of diaspora Africans who can re-imagine, reframe, and reclaim “aid” in Africa.

The African Diaspora as well as the aid industry are popular topics of conversation, however, governments, international organizations and financial institutions mainly drive them.  These bodies promote important discussions, about how African diaspora wealth can boost economic growth on the continent, and about the scope that remittances have to bolster economic development in home countries to name a few examples.

However, the most essential, and the conversation that I am urging us to keep engaging in, is how to use the tremendous resources available to the African diaspora to contribute to meaningful change in our countries of residence and/or origin. In the US, for instance, the African diaspora are the most educated immigrant group and we send over $40 billion dollars in remittances each year. Since 2007, remittance flows to Africa have exceeded official aid and amount to approximately $200 billion. Despite these contributions, discussions on the African diaspora’s role in aid initiatives continues to be shaped by larger institutions and agencies, such as the World Bank and the African Union.  Even non-profit organizations like Global Giving, Ashoka, and the Calvert Foundation are offering services to the Diaspora.

Where are the diaspora in these discussions? Are we forging the necessary alliances, partnerships, and relationships to represent our collective interests?  Are we building institutions that combine our skills and resources to insert our voices into these conversations?

While it is important to recognize the limits and constraints of the diaspora’s roles, and to acknowledge groups like Project Diaspora, Diaspora African Women’s Network, Council of Young African Leaders and Priority Africa Network who have made significant contributions, there remains a huge demand for us in the diaspora to drive dialogue, influence decisions and affect change. Otherwise, we risk remaining an open opportunity, driven by external interests and agendas.

This is why Africans in the Diaspora (AiD) exists. Conversations about the financial power of the Diaspora are widely pervasive, but where is the platform that pools and invests those resources strategically? AiD offers a platform where diasporans can invest in reputable African social change organizations and ventures, facilitating a direct link between Africans on the continent and in the diaspora.
We are presently in the middle of a 40-day holiday fundraising campaign to mobilize and pool resources from the diaspora to invest in three African social change organizations. Just two weeks into it, we have over $15,000 raised, with investments coming from the US, UK, and Canada. It is inspiring to see where people invest and why. For example, contrary to some assumptions, Africans are giving to organizations based outside of their home countries, even when their home country is represented.

But AiD is beyond a platform. It’s a community building organization that aims to reclaim “aid” in Africa and to ensure Africans drive change in their communities.

 

Will you join us in claiming our power?

 

 

Solome Lemma is the co-founder and executive director of Africans in the Diaspora (AiD). She has 10 years of experience working in and on Africa. Solome was recently recognized as a White House Champion of Change for her work with Diaspora communities. She was also named as one of Foreign Policy Magazine’s “100 women to follow on twitter.”  You can follow her on twitter at @innovateafrica.

 

Filed Under: Africa

Comments

  1. Robert says

    December 21, 2012 at 2:43 am

    Just curious as to significance of African Diaspora, because within many circles, especially during the Pan-Africanist movement in the Americas, those Africans who were deposited there, consider themselves apart of the African Diaspora? Are they excluded from this from assisting in this change for their ancestral home?

    Reply
  2. MsAfropolitan says

    December 21, 2012 at 2:36 pm

    Hi Robert.

    Absolutely not. As Solome wrote “There are many diaspora communities with their own histories, interests, needs and opportunities.”

    What made you ask?

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Feminism. African Studies. Social Criticism.

Hi! I'm Minna Salami, I'm a Nigerian-Finnish and Swedish writer and social critic, and the founder of this blog. Read my full bio here

View My Blog Posts

Subscribe to my newsletter

* indicates required

Follow My social media

Visit Us On InstagramVisit Us On FacebookCheck Our Feed

The New Institute

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=go_ddI8Lu9k&t=7s

Sensuous Knowledge – Get the book (US version)

Sensuous Knowledge – Get the book (UK version)

Recent Comments

  • Evgen on There were no matriarchies in precolonial Africa
  • ทางเข้าเล่น joker on The challenge for western feminism in the 21st century
  • Schües on On Abortion
  • AneM on Polygamy in Africa has little to do with sex
  • Khalifa on Polygamy in Africa has little to do with sex

Archives

  • March 2023 (1)
  • February 2023 (1)
  • August 2022 (4)
  • May 2022 (1)
  • January 2022 (2)
  • December 2021 (1)
  • August 2021 (1)
  • May 2021 (5)
  • April 2021 (3)
  • March 2021 (4)
  • December 2020 (1)
  • October 2020 (1)
  • September 2020 (3)
  • May 2020 (1)
  • April 2020 (2)
  • March 2020 (4)
  • February 2020 (2)
  • January 2020 (1)
  • December 2019 (1)
  • November 2019 (1)
  • July 2019 (1)
  • May 2019 (1)
  • March 2019 (4)
  • February 2019 (1)
  • December 2018 (2)
  • November 2018 (1)
  • October 2018 (2)
  • August 2018 (1)
  • July 2018 (2)
  • June 2018 (2)
  • May 2018 (2)
  • March 2018 (2)
  • February 2018 (2)
  • January 2018 (1)
  • December 2017 (1)
  • November 2017 (1)
  • October 2017 (2)
  • September 2017 (3)
  • August 2017 (6)
  • July 2017 (1)
  • June 2017 (3)
  • May 2017 (6)
  • March 2017 (2)
  • February 2017 (3)
  • January 2017 (2)
  • December 2016 (1)
  • November 2016 (3)
  • October 2016 (3)
  • September 2016 (2)
  • August 2016 (2)
  • July 2016 (2)
  • June 2016 (1)
  • May 2016 (3)
  • April 2016 (1)
  • March 2016 (2)
  • February 2016 (2)
  • January 2016 (3)
  • December 2015 (2)
  • November 2015 (3)
  • October 2015 (4)
  • September 2015 (4)
  • August 2015 (3)
  • July 2015 (2)
  • June 2015 (3)
  • May 2015 (4)
  • April 2015 (4)
  • March 2015 (10)
  • February 2015 (4)
  • December 2014 (3)
  • November 2014 (5)
  • October 2014 (1)
  • September 2014 (2)
  • August 2014 (4)
  • July 2014 (3)
  • June 2014 (3)
  • May 2014 (5)
  • April 2014 (4)
  • March 2014 (2)
  • February 2014 (4)
  • January 2014 (3)
  • December 2013 (3)
  • November 2013 (4)
  • October 2013 (3)
  • September 2013 (4)
  • August 2013 (5)
  • July 2013 (4)
  • June 2013 (4)
  • May 2013 (6)
  • April 2013 (3)
  • March 2013 (7)
  • February 2013 (3)
  • January 2013 (5)
  • December 2012 (4)
  • November 2012 (9)
  • October 2012 (8)
  • September 2012 (4)
  • August 2012 (6)
  • July 2012 (6)
  • June 2012 (5)
  • May 2012 (8)
  • April 2012 (7)
  • March 2012 (5)
  • February 2012 (4)
  • January 2012 (6)
  • December 2011 (5)
  • November 2011 (6)
  • October 2011 (6)
  • September 2011 (8)
  • August 2011 (6)
  • July 2011 (5)
  • June 2011 (5)
  • May 2011 (5)
  • April 2011 (4)
  • March 2011 (7)
  • February 2011 (6)
  • January 2011 (7)
  • December 2010 (5)
  • November 2010 (9)
  • October 2010 (7)
  • September 2010 (5)
  • August 2010 (4)
  • July 2010 (6)
  • June 2010 (5)
  • May 2010 (3)
  • April 2010 (3)
  • March 2010 (1)

more articles

Black feminism and the polycrisis

March 17, 2023 By MsAfropolitan Leave a Comment

… [Continue Reading...]

New writing on the Eco Gender Gap

February 16, 2023 By MsAfropolitan Leave a Comment

… [Continue Reading...]

Privacy Policy

https://msafropolitan.com/gdpr

Copyright MsAfropolitan © 2023