IOM Ethiopia has conducted a three-day training for regional diaspora coordination officials from five regional states of Ethiopia starting on October 15th in Addis Ababa.

The training is intended to build the capacities of diaspora coordination officers from Amhara, Tigray, Dire Dawa, Gambella, and the Southern Nations Nationalities and Peoples (SNNPR) regional states and to improve their ability to optimally harness the resources of the Ethiopian diaspora for development.

The officials will gain insights into the migration and development nexus, the diaspora role in building the economy, and government policies relating to the diaspora. 

 The training, which will be delivered by international and local experts, is a follow up of a rapid needs assessment conducted by IOM to determine institutional gaps among different actors working in the areas of diaspora engagement. 

This 1st round of the training has been followed by two additional consecutive rounds of trainings. The two additional trainings were provided on 10 – 12 December 2012 in Addis Ababa and 2 – 4 January, 2013 in Hawassa consecutively to the rest of officials from regional diaspora coordination offices of the remaining regional states of Ethiopia and other diaspora affairs focal persons from other regional and federal offices closely working on areas diaspora engagement. As a result of the three rounds of training, a total of 55 higher officials from all regional diaspora coordination offices and other federal and regional offices that are closely working in areas of diaspora engagement were trained. 

The training is part of the 12-country Strengthening of African and Middle Eastern Diaspora Policy through South-South Exchange (AMEDIP)project co-funded by Switzerland, the Netherlands, Italy and France, and implemented by IOM and ICMPD. The project has also facilitated donation of office equipments to all the regional diaspora coordination offices as one component of the capacity building initiative.

For more information please contact

Demissew Bizuwerk
IOM Addis Ababa
Tel. +251 911 652 102
Email: bdemissew@iom.int