Should Returnee Diaspora Doing Business in African Countries Be Subject to Same Regulations as Foreign Investors?

After hearing about Zimbabwe’s new law mitigating against major stakeholdership from foreign investors, I began to think about the implications of this law to other Africans wishing to do business in Zimbabwe.

The law, it seemed, was motivated by the growing investment (and control) of Zimbabwe’s economy, and – at least on the surface – seeks to mitigate this by requiring that foreign investors partner with local Zimbabweans on their business ventures. I totally cosign this concept. But, full disclosure, I’m pan-African, don’t view globalisation as inherently good (when it often defaults to ‘westernisation’), and, beyond privileged identity politics, I am always going to be a stark advocate for the protection, empowerment, and equipping of Africans on the continent, over anyone else. That includes Diaspora, unfortunately. So there, now you know where I stand. You can read my comments with a grain of salt.

I started tweeting about Nigeria’s similar context, in which we do have quite a bit of foreign investors at play, and Diaspora, as a group, are also emerging as a privileged investor segment, able to leverage their ties to foreign countries, their positioning as ‘cultural bridges’ to secure financing, and spawn ventures which ARE contributing to Nigeria’s development. The impact of the Diaspora on Africa’s development can not be denied (and is not going to be contested here). What I’m calling for is an interrogation of the assumption that “Diaspora” are inherently the lesser of two evils when it comes to governing and facilitating development on the continent, whether in the public or private sector.

Case in point: I recently had a conversation with a Brit-born-and-raised Nigerian who has only recently moved to (no, not moved ‘back’, but ‘moved to’) the country in order to capitalize on some of the opportunities of available. “Africa is rising” after all, she said, and it just seemed the right time to ‘come here’. I found myself reflecting on conversations I’d had with white expats, who almost verbatim, expressed the same sentiment. The difference in my reaction to what came though, is where my concern stems. “Most Nigerians here just don’t get professionalism. So people see me and want to work with me. I deliver results.” Okay… (uncomfortable.)