Réseaux, connaissances, appartenance : les clés d’une politique diasporique efficace par Kingsley Aikins, expert du Diaspora Engagement.
Fort de son expérience auprès de plus de 50 pays, Kingsley Aikins propose une lecture structurée de l’engagement diasporique, en identifiant les facteurs clés de succès — du diaspora capital aux logiques de réseau — et en soulignant les erreurs récurrentes qui empêchent les États de transformer leur diaspora en véritable levier stratégique. Un entretien dans sa langue natale.
Kingsley Aikins est irlandais et expert des diasporas. Il est co-fondateur et CEO de The Diaspora Institute, un cabinet de conseil spécialisé dans le Diaspora Engagement, et fondateur et PDG de The Networking Institute, une société de conseil basée à Dublin. Il est un expert reconnu du networking et a beaucoup écrit et pris la parole sur le sujet. Il a animé des ateliers ainsi que des programmes de formation au networking, en ligne et en présentiel, pour de grandes entreprises en Irlande et à l’étranger. Il a soutenu plus de 50 organisations (États, Régions, Villes, entreprises) dans la mobilisation efficace de leurs diasporas.
Il est diplômé en économie et en sciences politiques du Trinity College de Dublin. Au cours de sa carrière, il a travaillé pendant 10 ans pour l’Irish Trade Board et IDA Ireland, et a été basé à Sydney. Il a ensuite dirigé l’Ireland Funds pendant 21 ans, principalement depuis Boston. Durant cette période, plus d’un quart de milliard de dollars a été levé pour des projets en Irlande.
DFO: You have spent your career helping countries and institutions engage their diasporas, starting with the Irish one but also many others across three continents. From your experience, what are on one hand the key factors that make a diaspora engagement strategy truly successful and sustainable? and on the second hand the main pitfalls or mistakes to avoid when designing and implementing a diaspora engagement strategy?
KA: Here are a series of key factors that make a diaspora engagement successful and these comments are based on the experience of working with over 50 countries, regions and cities around the world:
- Countries have to make the decision to engage in their diasporas and then invest the necessary resources.
- Countries have to realise and appreciate that there is such a concept as Diaspora Capital which we define as ‘the resources available to a country, region, city or organisation and is made up of 3 flows:
- flows of people
- flows of knowledge
- and flows of money.
- A decision has to be made as to who is responsible at a government level for diaspora engagement. Governments have two options: either to be implementers or facilitators. In our experience the best outcome is to have a combination of public and private initiatives. Departments of Foreign Affairs are critical because they have extensive networks of people and locations around the world.
- Successful diaspora engagement requires a ‘whole of government’ approach which involves all government departments and there needs to be a programme to ‘diasporise’ the wider community to get them to appreciate the potential.
- Key to success is to listen to the diaspora and ensure that they believe that they are being heard.
- Data is critical and the 3 fundamental questions to be asked of all diasporas are « Who are they, Where are they and What are they doing? »
- Accept that there is no one homogenous diaspora – there are many and they tend to be diverse, diffuse, difficult and disconnected. There is thus no ‘one size fits all’ when dealing with diasporas – there are many.
- Diaspora initiatives should focus on both the successful and the vulnerable
- Identify ‘over achievers’ in both the home and the host country and find ways to bring them together
- Reward and recognise exceptional people in the diaspora as this can encourage others to come forward.
- Diaspora engagement is all about belonging and this is often not to a country but to a place which could be a city, region, town or village. It could also refer to an organisation e.g. a University where they are called ‘alumni, or a company or a sports team.
- Find ways to identify diaspora organisations and help them with capacity building and training
- Create opportunities for serendipitous encounters for members of the diaspora and members of the home country.
- Ensure that ‘asks and tasks’ happen – people have to be asked.
- Build networks between members of the diaspora that work for mutual benefit.
- Be aware of the Intergenerational Transfer of Wealth which, in the US alone, will amount to over $120 trillion between now and 2050 and this offers the potential for diaspora philanthropy.
- Identify business ‘rock stars’ and involve them in their home countries – there are many examples of CEO’s of major companies interacting with their home countries
- Appreciate the difference between the ‘state’ and the ‘nation’ – the state being lines on a map and the nation being a global notion.
- Develop diaspora engagement programmes for ‘baby boomers’ and ‘next generation’ people
- Use technology such as AI to help identify members of the diaspora but always remember to be ‘hi-tech’ and ‘hi-touch’
And here are a series of reasons why diaspora initiatives often fail:
- Many diaspora initiatives are like fireworks – they start off in a blaze of glory and then fizzle out
- Simple mathematical assumptions don’t always work – e.g. assuming that if the diaspora is large then their support of the home country will also be large is often not true.
- There is a lack of data about the diaspora – different groups have different information on the diaspora but are not willing to share it.
- Many diaspora initiatives run out of money – money is the oxygen that keeps organisations going
- There is distrust between the home and host country and sometimes resentment about having to emigrate. When people say that the ‘best and brightest’ have left the home country what does that say about those who stayed….!!!
- Diaspora organisations are often weak, poorly funded, lack governance and are dominated by strong personalities and sometimes have political agendae
- General exhortations to the diaspora to help their home country often don’t work – there needs to be specific ‘asks and tasks’
- Diasporas sometimes feel they are not being listened to by the home country and are always being asked for money.
- The next generation are not as committed as their parents were to their country of origin.
- Diaspora groups can sometimes be disputatious and have disagreements.
As Director of the Institute of the Diaspora, you work with both public and private actors. In your view, how can these two spheres collaborate more effectively to mobilize diaspora talent and networks for the benefit of their home countries?
As mentioned above it is important that there are both public and private initiatives in the diaspora engagement space. Both need each other but there sometimes can be a tension. It is important that they both listen to each other and understand each other’s priorities.
"Governments need to develop 5 year strategies and policies
and engage the diaspora in developing them."
An example here would be the recent global questionnaire of the Irish diaspora that The Diaspora Institute carried out to help the Irish Government develop their next 5 year strategy for engaging the Irish diaspora. Over 10,000 people in the worldwide Irish diaspora responded as well as 120 organisations who submitted papers. This will form the basis of the next national strategy and was an important statement to the Irish diaspora and invitation for them to participate in creating future policies.
In a world marked by geopolitical tensions, technological disruptions, and growing competition over resources – among which talent is one of the most critical, sometimes even coming from a nation’s own diaspora – , we believe that nations must activate all possible levers of power — including their diasporas. From your perspective, what future role should diasporas play in global affairs by 2035, and how can countries best prepare to harness this potential?
This is a particularly important question given the recent geopolitical shifts in the world. We, in TDI, believe that countries need their friends around the world now more than ever and their diasporas constitute such friends. Countries need the capitals of consistency such networks of belonging and friendship represent. Diasporas are a primary example of these networks operating at a global level.
The key here is handling change. Everywhere that institutions and industries turn nowadays they are faced with growing declarations of an ever accelerating pace of change that will challenge their foundations, competitiveness , products and relevance. In a world of tanks and tariffs which is becoming more protectionist, isolationist and transactional, challenging ourselves to perpetually reimagine is a prerequisite for success in a changing world. In this era of unreliability and volatility, diaspora engagement has fast emerged as a preferred capital of consistency for places and organisations around the world. Whether it be national or local governments, global corporate entities, philanthropic organisations, non-profits, universities and other actors, there is a prolific increase in wanting to apply the agility and range of diaspora capital to help such entities prosper in a networked age. This cross-institutional and cross-sector impact is bringing an increasing demand for reimagined solutions for diaspora engagement.
By 2035 there will be an increased awareness of the difference between the state and the nation as explained above. An example here is the extent that India has developed a notion of ‘Global Indianess’ which covers business, culture, sport, education and food. Part of this is the role that diasporas can play in nation branding. From being the preserve of just a few countries diaspora engagement is now a growth industry which has resulted in an increasing total addressable market not yet at full capacity. The EU Global Diaspora Facility has mapped diaspora engagement in over 110 countries, 80 of which have at least one institution dedicated to diaspora engagement but only 25% have adopted a diaspora engagement policy.
In addition this is part of a bigger movement with institutions beyond government now accelerating their turn to diaspora capital. These include entities across business, academia, civil society, industry, international development and philanthropy. TDI believes all these elements will increase dramatically by 2035.
You have emphasized the importance of building emotional ties between the diaspora and its home country in order to strengthen engagement. In concrete terms, how can these ties be created and sustained?
I think the key here is to develop a sense of belonging and I quote Professor Geoffrey Cohen of Stanford University who said “A crisis of belonging is destroying us – a sense of belonging isn’t just a by-product of success; it’s a condition for success”.
We all want to belong and this might be to a town or village rather than a country. Going along with that is having a sense of pride. Having been in Paris for the Olympics I sensed a very strong feeling of pride at the magnificent job Paris and France in general did.
Looking at the French case specifically, what lessons could France learn from other countries that have managed to turn their diasporas into a strategic asset for economic, cultural, or diplomatic influence?
See key factors for success above. Also I think France should do an audit of what other countries are doing and join an organisation that we, inTDI, follow called C.A.S.E. which stands for Copy and Steal Everything…..!!!!!!
As Picasso said “good artists copy and great artists steal’….!!!! There are hundreds of diaspora initiatives around the world and an analysis of them would be informative and lead to new ideas.
In recent years, France has been facing both political and economic crises. A large part of the population — like a lot of diaspora members — express distrust toward politicians and government institutions. A significant number of French citizens who left the country over the past decade, and never returned, state that this situation was one of the reasons for their departure. In such a context, how can diaspora engagement be fostered with institutions and with a homeland that sometimes inspires defiance?
I think you have to develop a different narrative that links to the point above and is about having a sense of belonging and pride. And it is non-political. The political scene in France is negative and toxic? so you need to develop alternative narratives and spokespeople and it revolves around non-toxic topics like culture, food, sport, art, music etc. I also think you should identify, publicise, reward and recognise exceptional French people in the diaspora and tell their stories.
France is a highly centralized country. Do you think a national diaspora policy is necessary first, to then be implemented at the regional level? Or could regional diaspora policies have an impact and a future of their own? In your view, what would be the right scale for designing a diaspora policy in a country as centralized as France?
I think you need both – an overarching national strategy and then lots of local initiatives that go right down to the micro level. An example here was a major national initiative in Ireland some years ago called The Gathering where the diaspora were invited to visit Ireland during a specific period. Thousands of events were organised at a local level and hundreds of thousands of people came back as visitors. It was extremely successful and the government are planning to repeat it. Key to it’s success were the over 5000 events which were organised in towns and villages across the country.
Other countries have now done similar events [NDLR: par exemple le Ghana en 2019 avec le Year of Return]. Actually the original one was held in Scotland and called The Homecoming and Ireland copied it….C.A.S.E…..!!!!
French citizens, whether in the mainland or abroad, often struggle to recognize the existence of a French diaspora. The very term “diaspora” is debated and sometimes questioned when applied to French people living abroad. I observe that roughly one out of two even believe the word does not apply to them, for historical, cultural, ethnic, or religious reasons. Do you see this as an obstacle to developing a diaspora policy and an engagement strategy? If so, how can this challenge be overcome?
This can be a challenge as it is a value laden term and often gets confused with ‘migrant’ which has very negative connotations these days. If, for example, a British qualified doctor goes to work in India he is an ‘expat’ but if an Indian qualified doctor goes to work in England he is a ‘migrant’. Words become weaponised – maybe it has something to do with colonial countries.
I had the sense that diaspora was not a word/concept used in France and the term ‘les francais de l’étranger’ was more commonly used. If that is the case then I think getting ‘diaspora’ accepted may be too difficult and it may be more practical to use the ‘de l’étranger’ description.
France has one of the largest diplomatic networks abroad, supported by a wide range of cultural, diplomatic, and economic institutions. Yet, these institutions often consider themselves the sole representatives of French influence overseas, and therefore do not recognize the diaspora as a potential partner in the country of residence. More broadly, the diaspora is sometimes perceived as competing with their services and representation role, and is thus met with distrust (1). How can this cultural mindset be changed, and how can the French diaspora abroad be transformed into a key actor that supports institutions in their mission while generating additional benefits for the home country?
Here’s the challenge. There is a distinction, for French diplomats overseas, between doing a great job for France and doing a great job for the French. Because French diplomats believe their role is the former and not the latter. They regard focus on the French diaspora as not part of their job and a little ‘beneath them’.
The only answer to that is to have a comprehensive training programme for all diplomats on the potential and importance of the global French and diasporas in general and to make it part of their ‘job spec’. It may be worth considering having diaspora ‘specialists’ posted to the major embassies around the world. In terms of diaspora engagement other countries are doing and using their embassies and consulates to do it.
"The only mistake France could make is not to have diaspora engagement as part of the job of diplomats.
That will require a significant mindset shift but will reap significant dividends if done effectively.
This is an opportunity for France "hidden in plain sight"."
What actions could France take to strengthen and facilitate private, associative, or entrepreneurial initiatives led by French citizens abroad, in order to better channel their dynamism in service of the Nation?
The most important action to take is to get key decision makers and then the general public to understand the latent potential of engaging the French diaspora. It will enhance the ‘nation brand’ and open up all sorts of opportunities.
Here are a number of reasons to engage the French diaspora and what the diaspora has to offer –
- Knowledge and expertise of local and global markets and sectors
- Networks of A&I – affluence and influence
- Resources – especially financial
- A worldview allied to a patriotic dividend
- A desire to give back, often philanthropically
Diaspora strategies are fundamentally based on networks. Through these networks large social and economic issues can be addressed in both host and home countries i.e. France. By developing groups of like minded people initiatives can be taken that are mutually beneficial. Networks allow the French diaspora, and, by extension, France, access to pools of resources, talent and knowledge that are able to influence policy, trade and social issues. Networks are thus immediate and the ability to connect and exchange ideas instantaneously is a powerful element of the contemporary world.
What were once ‘lost actors’ can now become ‘national assets’. In the old days your geography dictated your identity but now people in the French diaspora can lead ‘hyphenated’ or ‘transnational’ lives and be ‘here’ and ‘there’. Geography is now history. Brain drain can become brain gain and brain exchange and you don’t have to return to France to play an important role. Social media and AI means that contact is constant and immediate and the French diaspora can be extremely well informed and well connected with their mother country France.
Could you give examples of effective measures that would help strengthen France’s presence and action through its citizens abroad?
I think France needs a comprehensive education programme on the potential of connecting with the French diaspora and this has to be directed at the general public, public servants, educational institutions, sports organisations, trade unions, media and religious bodies. This should also include the French diaspora and their role and potential should be recognised by the French state allied to measures to support them in their host countries.
Based on your experience, and considering the feedback from other expatriates, what administrative measures (of any kind) could be improved or introduced to make expatriation, daily life abroad, and the return to France easier?
I give you three:
- A dedicated diaspora centre in Paris with regional offices.
- Trained diaspora specialists in major French Embassies abroad
- Extensive online and offline information on what returning to France involves and the supports available to facilitate easy settling in France.
In your view, what initiatives (of any kind) would be welcome to foster exchanges between French citizens abroad and those in metropolitan France in order to strengthen partnerships of all kinds and promote the transfer of knowledge, skills, capital, networks, and information?
A Taglit programme to attract back to France the offspring of French diaspora overseas. Taglit, meaning birthright in Hebrew, is a progamme aimed at bringing young Jewish people to Israel for a 10 day experience of the country. The programme is fully funded and aimed at people in the 18 – 26 age bracket. Since 1999 over 900,000 have participated.
In your opinion, what essential aspect of emigration, of the valorization of this resource, or of the life of French citizens abroad is never — or not sufficiently — addressed?
I think it is important that France ensures that it regards the French diaspora (as said above) not as ‘lost actors’ but as ‘national assets’. I get the sense that they regard the French diaspora as having turned their back on France whereas they should be embraced as a key part of the French identity who have an enormous amount to contribute and are an essential part of Global France. This needs to be articulated from the President on down as a way of recognising the role and potential of the Francophone world.
(1) Pour comprendre cette posture, lire « Le diplomate et les Français de l’Étranger » de Christian Lequesne (Éditions SciencesPo, 2024) ainsi que son interview pour diasporafrancaise.org #004 | Le diplomate et les Français de l’étranger | Christian Lequesne