In a speech read on behalf of Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni during the 4th African World Business Congress in Arusha (Tanzania) on Monday, Africa has lost a 3rd of its capital and is increasingly losing its skilled personnel at an increasing rate. The continent spends US$4 billion a year to employ 100,000 experts from Western countries in what is described as “technical assistance.” Money spent in Africa to hire these technical experts represents 35 percent of total official development aid to the continent. According to President Museveni, for Africa to advance, it must tap and utilize the scientific and technological know how and skills of Africans in Diaspora.
How comes Western professionals migrating to Africa are called experts while Africans professionals migrating to wealthy nations are called migrants? Does it make sense for Westerners to block African professionals from working in their capitals and promote anti migrant campaigns?
Since Westerners have successfully marketed Africa wrongly as a desolate and poor continent,we should not blame Africans who migrate to wealthy nations to utilize their talents. It’s ironic that while Africans regard their continent as poor and run to prosperous nations, Westerners on the other hand see resources and wealth in Africa. What lessons can Africa learn from the West?
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