Transcript UNESCO contributes to preparing the World Summit on the

Diaspora Knowledge
Networks
Abdul Waheed Khan
UNESCO Assistant Director-General
for Communication and Information
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“The
world has moved to a revolution
which is built on knowledge, on
technology and on information…
knowledge, if it is properly transferred,
if it is made available to all, gives the
greatest opportunity for people to
advance themselves and to fight
against poverty.”
Paul Wolfowitz, World Bank President
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“The fundamental cure for poverty is
not money but knowledge.”
Sir W. Arthur Lewis
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“The elimination of ignorance, of
illiteracy and the needless
inequalities of opportunities are
objectives that are valued for their
own sake.”
Amartya Sen
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The Knowledge Revolution
 Triggered by both globalization and technology
advances
 Globalization relates to a number of economic
reform trends including liberalization, privatization
and decentralization
 Technology is the mover in the age of globalization,
especially the Internet, and its WWW
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The Knowledge Revolution
 Increased demand for « Knowledge » and the evolution
from an agricultural to an industrial to a knowledge
society
 Globalization dictates stronger competition and the need
for better skills attained through modern educational
offerings
 Education as a commodity and trans-border flow of
knowledge as the technology eliminates the classic
barriers of time and space
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Wheel of Change
Educational
Technological
Change
change
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Linkage of Knowledge to Development
Human Capitals and
Productivity
Knowledge
Family Health
and Nutrition
Personal
Development
Reduced
Poverty
Macro
Economic
Growth
and
Development
Societal
Development
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A World of Contrasts
Access
to knowledge
and information
Prosperity
Globalization
Inclusion
Knowledge Divide or Digital Divide
Limited access
to knowledge
and information
Poverty
Marginalization
Exclusion
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Knowledge Societies
Knowledge Societies
Knowledge Knowledge
Creation
Knowledge Knowledge
Preservation Dissemination Utilization
Pluralism
Human Needs and Rights
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Principles of Knowledge Societies
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Freedom of Expression
Universal Access to Information and Knowledge
Respect for Cultural and Linguistic Diversity
Quality Education for All
endorsed at WSIS
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India’s Place in the Knowledge Era
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Democratic, political set up and political stability
Vast infrastructure for training IT professionals
Highly trained IT professionals
Extensive use of English language
Growing IT infrastructure
Well developed IT industry
Indigenous information and communication technologies
Strong learning tradition
Rich Indian knowledge diaspora
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Indian Diaspora
 19th century
Forced migration to colonies (Mauritius, British
Guyana, West Indies, Fiji, East Africa, etc)
 1 August 1834
Act of Emancipation passed, freeing slaves in
colonies
 Partition of India
High migration to Pakistan
 1947 to present
High migration to developed countries
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Indian Diaspora
 Indian Diaspora: 20 Million people
 2nd largest diaspora in the world
 48 countries overseas with more than 10.000 Indians
 Biggest communities in the following countries:
Myanmar
USA
Malaysia
Saudi Arabia
2,902,000
1,678,765
1,665,000
1,500,000
Uganda
1,200,000
Source: Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs
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“Indians abroad have not only been
successful in many walks of life, but
have also been a source of inspiration
for their brethren back home.”
Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, President of India
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From Brain Drain to Brain Gain
 Brain drain
 Migration of skilled and educated human resources from
developing to developed nations
 Brain gain
 Expatriate skilled population as potential asset, not loss
 Transfer of expertise/skills of expatriates back to home
Country of origin and country of adoption have access to
knowledge and expertise of expatriate
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From Brain Drain to Brain Gain
 Grassroots actions of expatriats in need of
institutional support
 Institutional action in need of grassroots support
ICTs can help to overcome these problems
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Diaspora Networks
 Non-territorialized entities
 Defining, maintaining, activating and reproducing
their identity through collective exchange and
interactions
 Require high quality communication systems
 Diaspora networks are fragile social constructs
 Risk of diaspora’s detachment from home country
because of stronger links between diasporas
themselves
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ICT and Diaspora Networks
 Use of ICTs to consolidate and reinforce sociocognitive processes underlying collective practices
 Potential of computer-mediated communications for
new forms of interactions between diaspora
members in host and home countries
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Diasporas, Development and ICT
Consolidate socio-cognitive
dynamics of interactions
Fragile, Bottom-Up Social
Constructs
Diaspora Collective
Practice
Non-territorialized
Entities
Consolidate technological base of
computer–mediated communications
Human Resources for
Development
Consolidate diaspora participation in
the co-development process
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Development through Knowledge Networks
 Education
 Exchange programmes for students and
academic professionals
 Establish grants for academic exchange
 Partnerships between universities
 Cooperations in research projects
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Development through Knowledge Networks
 Science
 Knowledge/Publications exchange
 Interface with Non-Resident Indians in
Science and Technology (INRIST)
 “Science and Technology Professionals of
Indian Diaspora” platform by India’s
Ministry of Science & Technology
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Development through Knowledge Networks
 Culture
 Export Indian culture through entertainment
products
 Cultural bonding through Sister City
Relationships
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Development through Knowledge Networks
 Economy
 Promotion of Indian products in country of
adoption
 Supply of useful insight into market
penetration strategies by professionals
abroad
 Development of Knowledge services
 Direct contribution of expatriates to Indian
economy through FDI and remittances
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Development through Knowledge Networks
 Health
 Coordination of Indian health professionals’
volunteer services and donations to enhance
Indian health-care
 Establishment of cooperations between
hospitals in India and developed countries
 Medical education through professionals
abroad
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Example: TOKTEN
Transfer of Knowledge Through Expatriate
Nationals (TOKTEN)
 Global UNDP mechanism for mobilizing
expatriates to undertake short-term
consultancies in their countries of origin
 Contributes to reducing "brain-drain" at relatively
low cost and speed of implementation
 Based on spirit of volunteerism
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Recommendations
 Set up information networks to assist in
 Collectivizing and sharing knowledge
 Detecting new and emerging conceptual
relationships
 Mobilizing human resources for home country
development
 Building confidence among diaspora
 Support research on Diaspora Knowledge
Networks
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Conclusion
In order to convert brain drain into brain
gain, there is a strong need to articulate and
coordinate bottom-up grassroots actions
with top-down institutional policies
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