Investment

Diaspora Engagement on Country Entrepreneurship and Investment

Diaspora entrepreneurship and investments are often hailed as drivers of economic development and positive change, and there is enough evidence to support this: 80% of FDI in China is from the Chinese diaspora, Indian diasporas in the USA have played an instrumental role in building up India’s IT industry and creating a second ‘Silicon Valley’ in their country — to name some of the well-known success stories. This is no different to African diaspora actors. So who are these people and how have they become so engaged with their home countries?

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‘One nation, one people, one destiny’? Ghanian diaspora contribution to national development usign diverse channels

This research examines just three of the diverse ways in which Ghanaians in the diaspora effect the transfer of resources with the broad aim of improving the economic lot of their counterparts in Ghana’s northern, central and coastal zones. An obvious conclusion is that the Ghanaian diaspora is already engaging in mobilizing funds for national development through various community-level development projects. The way the money comes in is in small bits, sporadic, unorganised and information about it is rather scanty. But this activity could form a key plank for a national development strategy given the appropriate policy and institutional framework.

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AFFORD Policy Brief: Blended Finance Summary July 2019

Attracting private capital to emerging or frontier markets in Africa poses significant challenges for governments, development Finance Institutions (DFIs), philanthropists, and private impact investors. It also opens up opportunities, given the increasing shift by investors towards funds that help meet Environmental, Social Responsibility, and Governance (ESG) concerns. Drawing in such private capital flows to unlock the estimated USD $331 billion needed for small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) growth in Africa, will be critical in meeting targets set in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

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AFFORD BUSINESS CLUB: ABC Study Report 2016

The outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) which struck Sierra Leone in May 2014, and lasted until November 2015, brought with it a tragic death toll, as well as devastation of families and communities and disruption to social life. The 18-month crisis had an equally devastating effect on the country’s economy and businesses, particularly its SMEs. The various domestic and international interventions imposed to contain the outbreak, including restrictions on travel and trade, and emergency measures to curtail movement and gatherings, increased economic hardship and impacted diaspora and foreign investors with operations in the country. In addition, the collapse in commodity prices during the Ebola outbreak, including the global price of iron ore, affected the mining sector, and also had a significant economic impact resulting in decline in government revenue, job losses and drop in income for SMEs in the supply chain.

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The AFFORD Business Club Guide To: Doing Business in Nigeria Vol 1 – 2018-19

This factsheet, produced as part of the AFFORD Business Club’s services, provides a route map of the exciting business opportunities in Nigeria for existing and potential investors within the Small and Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) sector. It aims to bring together useful information and insights that will ease business and country operations for diaspora and other businesses in the complex Nigerian market. The ABC Guide opens with an overview of the country’s economy, political and social context,with basic market insights into the business opportunities that exist in key sectors. In addition to access to finance, which is one of the biggest challenges for diaspora SMEs, this guide provides information of useful statutory and private sector organisations whose functions may have implications for businesses operating in Nigeria. It provides case studies of some of the situations businesses frequently encounter and the strategies adopted to successfully overcome them. It concludes with tips and advice gleaned from the experience of AFFORD and its partners about operating successfully in Nigeria. There will be regular updates of ABC Guide to Doing Business in Nigeria.

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AFFORD Policy Brief: Blended Finance and Diaspora Investment 2019

Attracting private capital to emerging or frontier markets in Africa poses significant challenges for governments, development finance institutions (DFIs), philanthropists, and private impact investors. It also opens up opportunities, given the increasing shift by investors towards funds that help meet environmental, social responsibility, and governance (ESG) concerns. Drawing in such private capital flows to unlock the estimated USD 331 billion needed for small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) growth in Africa, will be critical in meeting targets set in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

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Introduction to RemitAid?: Remittance Match Funding and Remittance Tax Relief

Remittances have a number of economic and socio-political benefits relevant to development. We have analysed the range of direct, indirect, micro and macro-economic benefits, but have also identified the negative effects inherent in diaspora and migrant remittances. Consequently, we have designed a scheme (i.e. RemitAid™), which mitigates the negative impacts and structural imperfections, whilst optimising the positive impacts of remittances. RemitAid™ proposes that actual remittances sent to Less Developed Countries (LDCs) for activities falling within Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and charitable activities, should trigger government co-funding in OECD countries. The co-funding can be in the form of match funding and/or community (i.e. pooled) tax rebates – managed by a new agency RemitAid™ Development Fund (RDF). The funds shall be treated as endowment capital to generate income for grants and investment in diaspora and development activities in LDCs.

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Mitigating the Structural Imperfections and Negative Impacts of Remittances

The World Bank reports that in 2005 remittances to developing countries sent through formal financial channels was about US$167 billion. A consensus has now emerged that remittances are an important form of international development finance. We argue that remittances are particularly important for sustainable development because the process involves self-help by people who originated from developing countries.

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Blended finance and the role of Diaspora investment

Attracting private capital to emerging or frontier markets in Africa poses significant challenges for governments, development finance institutions (DFIs), philanthropists, and private impact investors. It also opens up opportunities, given the increasing shift by investors towards funds that help meet environmental, social responsibility, and governance (ESG) concerns. Drawing in such private capital flows to unlock the estimated USD 331 billion needed for small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) growth in Africa, will be critical in meeting targets set in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

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