Nigeria’s Diaporas are critical to national development – Minister

 

The Nigerian Government says its Diasporas are critical component of all facets of national development. 

Minister of State, Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Zubairu Dada said this in Abuja at the Maiden Edition of the Nigeria in Diaspora Commission, NIDCOM, Quarterly lecture series.

According to him, about 20 billion USD was remitted to Nigeria in 2020 by the Diasporas.

He said with 17 million Nigerians in the Diaspora, the Government was ready to build and strengthen ties with the Diasporas, more than ever before.

” The mobilisation of Nigerians in Diaspora for national development has over time become more pertinent given the ever growing contribution of Nigerians in the Diaspora to National development”. 

” The contributions of the Diaspora in such countries like Israel, India and The Philippines, and o mention a few, have made tremendous impact on the development of their countries and I strongly believe that the establishment of our own Nigerians in Diaspora Commission,NIDCOM, is a right step to achieving the same noble objective,” he said.

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Ambassador Dada further noted that as a means of reaching out and mobilising Diasporas to buy into a partnership for the develoment of the motherland, some strategies were marshaled.

Mobilisation Strategies

1. Establishment of Diaspora Commission

2. Diaspora Policy

3. Constitution of Senate and House of Representatives Committees on Diaspora

4. Building and Strengthening ties with Diasporas

5. Diaspora voting

6.National Diaspora Day

7. Establishment of State Diaspora Focal Points offices and Officers

The State Minister added that while NIDCOM intestifies efforts towards the establishment of the Nigeria Diaspora Investment Fund, the Institutional mobilisation of Nigerians in Diaspora has witnessed some verifiable economic investments in some key sectors like Education, Agriculture, Health, Sports/Entertainment, ICT, Entrepreneurship and Politics.

Fraud Office
Also speaking at the Inaugural Lecture, the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola said the Ministry in collaboration with the Nigeria Immigration Service, has approved for check up, th establishment of a Fraud Office. ( Non-judgmental passport issuing support Centres) in some selected international Airports in Nigeria to enable every Nigerian to renew their passports at the point of entry.

The Airports are:

1. The Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos,
2. The Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja,
3. Port Harcourt International Airport and
4. The Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano to support the process of the new passport and confer confidence on it.

According to him, other key measure were also taken to cushion the effects of COVID-19 on Nigerians living and doing business abroad  especially those in countries most hit by the pandemic.

Some of the measures include:

1. The recent launch of electronic temporary passport to ease the burden in Nigerians whose passports have expired and need to travel back to Nigeria. It’s a one way travel document which must be surrendered on arrival to Nigeria at the entry point.
2. The Ministry also recently approved the Special passport enrollment exercise. This exercise gives the NIS personnel to meet with Nigerians in their places of residence in those countries and get them  enrolled for passport by deploying the mobile enrollment Unit. The exercise has commenced in Canada and USA.
3. NIS has approved the revalidation of all payments of passports made by Nigerians sequel to the emergence of COVID-19. This is to enable the NIS to conclude actions until all pending passports application are resolved.

Earlier, the Chairman of NIDCOM and host of the Inaugural Lecture, Abike Dabiri-Erewa said the Diaspora Lecture Series is projected to be a major aspect of national discourse where Nigerians both in the country and in the Diaspora can be kept abreast of the plans of the Government of Nigeria for her Diaspora community through NIDCOM.

” It is also an opportunity for the Government through NIDCOM to engage, inform and educate the Nigerians in the Diaspora through leading annopen discussion of issues that confront Nigerians in the Diaspora in relation to their existence in their host countries and their contributions to National Development”. Dabiri-Erewa explained.

The theme for the Lecture is ” Mobilising Nigerians in Diaspora for national development”.

 

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