[ACCI-CAVIE] Millions of Africans with high-level skills work at the heart of the world’s most competitive economies. Yet their expertise remains difficult to mobilize for the benefit of the continent. South Korea, Japan and Lebanon have explored different approaches. Their experiences reveal a major challenge for Africa: turning its diaspora into a source of economic and institutional power.
The Problem Is Not Brain Drain
Africa invests in training doctors, engineers, researchers and public-sector managers, yet some of these professionals move to environments offering more attractive salaries, career prospects and working conditions. Reducing this reality to a loss of talent overlooks the essential question: why do African institutions struggle to create the conditions that would enable these professionals to contribute sustainably to the development of their countries of origin? As Dr Lansana Gagny Sakho writes in Gouverner est un Métier, “The problem is not the mobility of talent. It is the inability of African institutions to create the conditions under which this talent would want to return, invest and engage.”
Uncompetitive salaries, political loyalty taking precedence over merit, insufficient recognition of international experience and limited access to decision-making positions point to a broader governance challenge. They raise questions about the ability of states to identify talent, entrust it with responsibility and organize its contribution. The objective, therefore, is not to compel skilled professionals to return, but to build institutions capable of benefiting from their expertise, whether they live on the continent or abroad.
South Korea, Japan and Lebanon: Three Strategic Lessons
South Korea invested in mobilizing its scientists and strengthening its technological capabilities. The establishment of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) in 1966 illustrates its determination to organize research around national priorities. Japan, meanwhile, has drawn on its international networks to facilitate market access, understand foreign business environments and identify innovations. In both cases, expertise acquired abroad can contribute to national development when it is connected to an economic strategy and institutions capable of putting it to use.
Lebanon offers another perspective through its transnational business networks, which connect investors, suppliers and customers across continents. These experiences are not models to reproduce mechanically. Rather, they demonstrate that the value of a diaspora depends on how a country organizes its relationship with itIn Gouverner est un Métier, Dr Lansana Gagny Sakho makes a compelling case:, “A citizen living abroad is not a loss. They are an antenna. A sensor. A bridge.” The strategic challenge is to structure these networks so they can support investment, skills transfers and the competitiveness of African economies.
The Diaspora: An Asset Beyond Remittances
Remittances make a significant contribution to many African economies. In Senegal, they account for more than 10% of gross domestic product, according to the figures cited in the original text. Yet financial transfers represent only part of the diaspora’s potential. Professionals abroad also possess technical, managerial and institutional expertise, knowledge of international markets and relationships that can facilitate partnerships, investment and the transfer of know-how.
The challenge is to turn these individual resources into collective capabilities. A researcher can inform public policy, an engineer can contribute to an industrial project, and an entrepreneur can open up new markets for local businesses. These contributions become strategic only when needs are identified, stakeholders are connected and results are monitored. This is why Gouverner est un Métier raises a central question: “Will their country be able to receive them?” Beyond the physical return of expatriates, the ability of institutions to welcome, organize and harness expertise determines whether value can be brought back home.
Economic Intelligence: The Missing Link
An African professional working at a financial institution in Washington may identify developments likely to affect their home country. A researcher at a European university may uncover knowledge relevant to public policy. An entrepreneur based in Dubai may know investors interested in African opportunities. These professionals can all serve as potential sources of strategic information. Their presence alone, however, is not enough. Relevant information must be gathered, analyzed and shared to anticipate risks, identify opportunities and support decision-making.
This is precisely the role of economic intelligence. The African Center for Competitive Intelligence (CAVIE) can contribute to this effort by mapping experts, structuring networks, producing strategic analyses and connecting expertise with decision-makers’ needs. This approach treats the diaspora not simply as a community to be approached, but as a knowledge network to be organized around African priorities. It reflects CAVIE’s mission to support public and private organizations through strategic monitoring, market intelligence, risk management and decision support.
Five Conditions for Mobilizing the Diaspora
The first condition is to establish formal institutional channels through which experts can contribute to public policy without permanently leaving their country of residence. The second is to recognize international experience in recruitment and appointments, so that expertise acquired abroad is treated as an asset rather than a source of mistrust. The third is to develop diaspora economic intelligence networks organized around national priorities and capable of providing useful information to public administrations and businesses.
The remaining two conditions concern the investment climate and institutional governance. Appropriate incentives, stronger legal protection, more predictable access to land and transparent procedures can encourage diaspora entrepreneurship. At the same time, reducing political interference in appointments and prioritizing competence are essential to building trust. These measures must be supported by clear objectives and indicators to assess investment mobilized, partnerships established, skills transferred and capabilities strengthened. Without this focus on results, diaspora engagement strategies risk remaining declarations of intent.
The Diaspora as a Mirror for Institutions
The diaspora often has a comparative perspective on the institutional practices of its country of origin. Its experience can help identify bottlenecks, compare domestic methods with those used elsewhere and suggest solutions. Such contributions require institutions to accept criticism and assess proposals on their merits. As Gouverner est un Métier observes, “A nation that wants to develop must have the courage to listen to those who love it enough to tell it the truth, even from afar, even when it hurts.”
Mobilizing expatriate expertise therefore raises a broader question: can African states make competence a criterion for decision-making and information an instrument of governance? The diaspora cannot replace effective institutions, but it can help strengthen them when its expertise is recognized and organized. Its strategic potential lies in the connection between governance, economic intelligence and development objectives. A well-mobilized diaspora can multiply development opportunities; an ignored diaspora remains an underused resource.
Lansana Gagny Sakho
Secretary-General, African Center for Competitive Intelligence (CAVIE)