WITHIN recent days, letters have been appearing in the newspapers expressing concerns about the treatment and facilities in place to welcome ideas and contributions from the diaspora and re-migrants.Make no mistake: Guyana owes its development to the contributions and participation of every Guyanese, at home and abroad.
The importance of the diaspora was reinforced in the 2015 elections. Political parties, as they vied for votes at home, simultaneously vied for the attention, financial resources and support/endorsement from overseas-based Guyanese.

Though this group was not afforded opportunity to cast a ballot, commitments were given by political parties that their ideas and contributions, valued as they were, would be factored into the nation’s development.

Recognised among this pool are many who are residing in countries where public opinions are valued and used as leverage by the elected and the contesting, their perception/reality being informed by said value. Additionally, promises cannot only be made; they will have to be honoured and fulfilled, given that the participatory culture of the diaspora includes holding persons to account.

Over the years, much has been said about remittances that continue to play an important role in our economy. In 2014, the Inter-American Development Bank reported that Guyana pulled in $90B. While remittances cannot be relied on to promote development, they serve to keep the economy afloat and aid in sustaining the wellbeing of resident Guyanese. Also, through purchase and exhibits of local art, craft, cuisine, entertainment and so forth, the diaspora is not only generating economic opportunities and money flow, but is also promoting our Guyanese-ness, serving as unofficial ambassadors.

Further, the premium placed on foreign exchange to development, sees countries embracing labour programmes for seasonal and migrant workers. While Guyana may not have a structured programme facilitated by the government, in enhancing the facilitation of such programme, government, through protocol, has contributed to the free movement of certain skills to work in any CARICOM country, and allows for individual and agencies to do likewise.
As the world advances in technology, opportunities are created for the diaspora to transfer knowledge and skills, which could make it less expensive for us at home to acquire the training and development yearned for. A nation and its people benefit when there is improvement, not only in the construction of roads and buildings, but also in the manner of response to the people’s input.

Guyana continues to benefit from visiting programmes, such as education and health. Overseas-based Guyanese initiate these programmes with colleagues of different nationalities who engage to do various outreach here.

Often, the motivation is consciousness of nationality and a sense of nationalism to give back, invest in, and improve the lives of those at home.

It needs to be said that structures are necessary to channel resources in all forms for the country to benefit. For instance, when products to assist in health or education outreach are being garnered and channelled to communities, it helps when there is less hassle at the port of arrival and when red tape is removed. It is known that medical teams have arrived here and products for supporting their activities were left at the wharves because of the red tape involved before release can be done. Where those who are re-migrating have concerns, there ought to be a system in place to address those concerns and ensure re-migrants’ reintegration is hassle-free. In addition to other things, re-migrants bring finances which contribute to our needed foreign exchange. It is held that a country can be measured by the way it treats its citizens. There is a uniting and symbiotic relationship between the diaspora and the home-based, which is love for country and a desire to see country do better. Together, the responsibility is ours at home to work to make the re-migrating and the diaspora feel appreciated and welcome as they work with us to improve and acquire necessary knowledge and skills to help achieve our mutual aspirations and goals.