A two -way street: reversing Brainrain in Somalia

So the crisis continues. And the brain drain is increasing.

But what if there was a way to turn Brain Drain? This is the question that the international organization of migration (IOM) asked for Somalia.

“There has been a lot of brain drain in Somalia. How do we bring back the skills that they have been able to reach in their country of origin in their country of origin?” said Yvonne Jepkoech Chelmio, one IOM Officially focused on labor and migration in Africa.

The migration of the IOM in Africa for Development Program (What) Selects members of the Somali Diaspora who are experts in their chosen areas and places them in local hospitals, schools and national ministries to build the self -supply of Somalia.

In the past 20 years, Mida has sponsored the return of more than 400 Somalis from 17 different countries. These returners have worked in many areas – including education and health, as well as climate action, city planning and the rule of law – all with the hope of sustainable development in Somalia.

‘Drivers of Change’

The Somali civil war that started in 1991 caused massive displacement, both internally and externally. More than 30 years later, the situation has improved, but security remains a problem, which in turn is sustainable development.

“What happens in countries such as Somalia is that someone becomes skilled in a field, trained, they don’t want to stay here. So you lose talent, you lose skills,” said pedagogy expert, Shire Salad, a DiaSpora participant in the Mida program that was placed in the Ministry of Education to work with their evaluation team.

With two million Somalis who live abroad, the Somali Diaspora has long played an integral role in the economy of the country. The money they return as transfers sometimes exceeds immediate foreign help, in total more than $ 2 billion annually and contributes at least one third of the National GDP.

But Mida differs from an exclusively economic understanding of the contributions of the Diaspora, instead creating ways for their return that emphasize their technical skills, expertise and international networks.

‘[The diaspora] Serve as bridges, as ambassadors, as directors of change and development factors, ”said Nasra Sheikh Ahmed, one of the IOM officials responsible for the program.

And according to Mrs. Ahmed, who is a member of the Somali diaspora itself, is one of the most remarkable things of the MIDA program that it grabs something that already exists – wants to return the Somali diaspora.

‘[The diaspora] See it still as their home. They are not immigrants in another country. They still see themselves as Somalis. They see themselves as an expansion, actually just living somewhere else. ‘

Education in the core

While the MIDA program has operated in many sectors, education is one of the most important sectors on which the MIDA program is aimed.

Mohamed Gure, professor at Somali National University, participated in the MIDA program as a local professional who worked together with members of the Diaspora to improve the curriculum for aspiring teachers.

Then Dr. Gure years ago his studies started, he said there were no programs in Somalia that offered a doctorate in education. So, like many others, he went abroad.

Nowadays he sees a new kind of problem – not enough Somalis want to become teachers, and those who believe they don’t need formal training.

“Teachers in the class have no training to be a teacher. This will influence the quality of education in Somalia in the long term,” said Dr. Gure.

In the course of a few years Dr. Gure together with Diaspora professionals to develop a new curriculum and to create a permanent partnership with the University of Helsinki in Finland.

The benefits of this new curriculum are already clear to him – students learn more and the online collaborations with students in Helsinki create an international network of expertise.

“All this [training] is a source for the country. All curricula that has been developed for the country will remain. It will be used by teachers who can train other teachers, “said Dr. Gure.

A two -way street

Partnerships, such as what Dr. Geure has experienced, are an essential part of the long-term effects of the MIDA program, so that they ensure that even after the professional Diaspora-professional contributions, they continue to exist.

“We have not only provided transfer of skills to two people, but these two people can now switch to four people. So there is more sustainability in terms of process,” said Mrs. Chelmio.

But this transfer of skills is not without challenges. Many of the Diaspora that return to Somalia have disappeared for years, sometimes decades. The Somalia to which they return is very different from the one they have left behind.

“Although you can speak the language and you may understand that culture, they still see you as a foreigner,” said Dr. Salad, who left Somalia when he was quite young and “returned with gray hair.”

Adjusting expertise to the Somali context is essential for sustainable development, and this is something that the local professionals are unique to do to do, so that a two -way street is created with both parties who act as experts.

‘[The diaspora] Do not understand the context, the dynamics of the country itself. The local expert can give the Diaspora expert the perspective, “said Mrs. Chelmio.

A future in which Somalis remain

Mida has reversed the brain drain of the past decades in small ways. It has reduced hundreds of diaspora members. And even if they have not stayed, their skills and expertise have.

But Somalis are still leaving the country and risk their lives on boats to wave and to Europe from pure hopelessness and many of them die.

Dr. Salad hopes that one day before Somalia there will be no brain drain to return.

“If they had hope in this country, they would have stayed. If they believed that this country would be a better country, they would have stayed. My hope is that younger generations will have hope that they will stay.”