/ 6 December 2010

Zimbabwe hosts first diaspora conference

Zimbabwe will host its first ever diaspora conference in the resort town of Victoria Falls later this month, Zimbabwe’s Herald Online reported on Monday.

The conference, expected to bring together business leaders, civic society, politicians and Zimbabweans from around the world, will run under the theme Engaging the Diaspora toward Zimbabwe’s Economic Reconstruction and will take place between December 16 and December 18.

This will be the first in a series of high profile meetings which will consider ways in which the diaspora and key players within Zimbabwe can work together to promote development.

Executive director of the Development Foundation for Zimbabwe (DFZ) Nokwazi Moyo said the conference will explore ways in which the skills of the diasporans can be harnessed.

“We hope to be able to strengthen Zimbabwe diaspora networks and increase their ability to contribute towards comprehensive national recovery and development,” said Moyo.

An estimated 4,5-million Zimbabweans live outside the country, the majority of them in South Africa.

Delegates to the conference are expected to come from Australia, Botswana, Ethiopia, the Netherlands, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States.

They also include representatives of the country’s labour movement, opinion leaders from the key political formations of the country, religious leaders and Zimbabwean professionals — some of whom are considering investing in Zimbabwe or returning home. — Sapa