Global Diaspora Forum: Day 1 Recap

The 2012 Global Diaspora Forum, hosted by USAID and the U.S. Department of State, concluded its first day with great success. As Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in her keynote address, “We…believe that diaspora communities have enormous potential to help solve problems and create opportunities in their countries of origin, because we believe that, as the title of this conference says, we can move forward by giving back.”

In addition to the inspirational remarks from the Secretary, the Forum featured a number of other notable highlights and announcements regarding the U.S. government’s work with diaspora communities. These included:

• The signing of a new MOU between USAID, Accenture, and CUSO International launching Diasporas for Development, an initiative to encourage highly skilled U.S. diaspora professionals to volunteer in their country of origin or heritage to support economic development.
• A recap of major partnership accomplishments for USAID, the U.S. Department of State, and diaspora communities, including the African Diaspora Marketplace II.
• The release of a new video capturing the critical person-to-person role diasporas play in diplomacy and development.
• Diaspora-led plenary sessions covering key areas for diaspora engagement, including a Mobile Money session facilitated by USAID’s Mobile Solutions.

To learn more:

• Read a blog post by Maura O’Neil, Chief Innovation Officer at USAID, on USAID’s IMPACT blog stressing the importance of engaging America’s diaspora communities in development.
• Read a press release on what to look forward to on the final day of the Global Diaspora Forum.