Mozambique - Since the civil war, which ended in 1992, many Mozambicans have opted to leave Mozambique in pursuit of better economic opportunities abroad. This has depleted the economy of skilled professionals in key social and industrial sectors, including healthcare, education and engineering.

In order to strengthen the support and engagement of the Mozambican diaspora in social, economic and cultural development of Mozambique, the government will this week launch a Strategy for Diaspora Engagement in National Development.

According to 2010 World Bank estimates, approximately 11.7 million Mozambicans have migrated and the majority are highly educated. In 2000, for example, the emigration rate of tertiary-educated Mozambicans was 45.1 per cent. 

The top destination countries for Mozambican migrants are South Africa, Malawi, Tanzania, Portugal, Swaziland, the United Kingdom, Germany, the United States and Spain.

The strategy, which outlines seven strategic goals and is the product of an 18-month process, has been developed by an inter-ministerial group led by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). It sought to build the institutional capacity of the government to engage the Mozambican diaspora.

The inter-ministerial group, known as the Technical Council, acts as an advisory board to the Institute for Mozambican Communities Living Abroad (INACE) – a department in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Other participating ministries include Education, Women and Social Action, Labour, Youth and Sport, Culture, Public Works and Housing, the Department of Immigration in the Ministry of Interior, and the Customs Department.

With financial support from IOM, INACE aims to institutionalize concepts, strategies and best practices in the area of diaspora engagement, and to establish a solid basis for moving forward with migration and development programmes.

The project has already organized a study tour to Cabo Verde, where eight government participants learnt about successful policies and programmes implemented over the past several years.

Other activities have included training the INACE Technical Council, conducting a mapping of Mozambicans in South Africa, and equipping INACE with a database and IT systems for database management.

The initiative has also developed a communications plan, including an INACE website, as well as a social media plan to establish channels through which the diaspora can engage with the government and national processes.    

“Mozambique’s diaspora can contribute in social, cultural and economic ways, including remittances, skills, and dialogue – all of which are key to national development. With this strategy, the government has signalled a commitment to longer term engagement to work together with the diaspora to leverage these contributions,” says IOM Mozambique Chief of Mission Stuart Simpson.

For more information, please contact

Katy Barwise
IOM Mozambique
Tel. +258 82 83 15585
Email: kbarwise@iom.int