THE Organisation of Africans, Caribbean and Pacific States has said that the African Diaspora Centre of Excellence will be established in Abuja, Nigeria.
The centre, which is expected to take off before the end of 2023, will coordinate activities of integration of Africans in the diaspora back in the continent.
The centre of excellence was approved by the summit of African Heads of States in December 2022.
Speaking on the centre, the Secretary-General, OACPS, George Chikoti, who was in Nigeria for the just concluded second Global African Diaspora Symposium, over the weekend said office accommodation had already been secured for the take off of the centre in Abuja.
Chikoti also revealed that the centre would be involved in galvanising the Africans in the diaspora to get involved in the development of the continent.
He said, “So the African in the diaspora that lives abroad needs to be integrated into the development of their countries.
“So the Centre of Excellence will be working with authorities of Nigeria in Nigeria, to help them develop ideas or projects, but to make sure that the diaspora abroad is integrated in the development of our countries. And so the Centre of Excellence will be supporting not only Nigeria, but globally, the African region.”
He also noted that the centre would be getting support from Brussels, Belgium so as to be able to meet its core mandate.
Chikoti stated, “We believe that by the end of the year, I think we should be able to have the skeleton structure that will lead the office. So we are not looking at something big, but we are looking at the essential elements that we need.
“So we need a coordinator of that office. We need people with some experience who will begin the work and as the week goes by, then they will see how large they may become. But I think we need to have a starting point.
“What we are saying is that if we create an Africa that is attractive, if it becomes attractive to invest back in Nigeria, then you will see that as people get older, they get fed up, they will want to come back to their countries. And this happens to most people, even most of us who studied in Europe in the 80s initially thought I would stay in Europe. But as I get older, I say no, I want to go back to my country.
