Centering the Voices of the African Diaspora in Europe
The Nordic Africa Institute (NAI), Sweden, and the University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) Institute for Pan-African Thought and Conversation (IPATC), South Africa, hosted a two-webinar series titled “Centering the Voices of African Migrants in Africa/European Union (EU) Migration Debates.” This webinar is the second of the two-part series which aims to provide a platform to bridge the gap between African and EU policymakers and African migrants in light of the first global, holistic, inter-governmental document on migration: the 2018 United Nations (UN) Global Compact for Safe, Regular, and Orderly Migration. The webinar was attended by 70 participants from both continents, and beyond.
The webinar explored diaspora perspectives on the European migration debate in the aftermath of the 2015 European refugee crisis, and reflects on avenues for exchange and collaboration between actors on the two continents that can contribute to a more productive policy climate in Africa/EU relations around migration governance. This two-webinar series builds on previous IPATC/NAI policy work on Africa/EU migration, including a two-part webinar series in June 2020 on “The Impact of COVID-19 on Africa/EU Migration”, from which a policy brief was published under the same title.
Chair: Dr. Jesper Bjarnesen, Senior Researcher at the Nordic Africa Institute.
Speakers: Mr. Kitimbwa Sabuni, Spokesperson for the Swedish Association of Afro-Swedes.
Dr. Tekalign Mengiste, Senior Researcher at the College of Social Sciences, Addis Ababa University and Affiliated Researcher at the Department of Social Anthropology, Stockholm University.
Mr. Bora Kamwanya, Diaspora Experience Consultant at The African Foundation for Development (AFFORD).
Ms Zoliswa Ntsoko (South Africa) is the Institute’s Administrative Assistant who assists with general administration and research. She is a seasoned professional with a background in Disaster Management. She holds an Advanced Diploma in Management from Milpark Business School, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Public Management from Regenesys Business School. She also holds certificates in Project Management, and in Disaster Management. Previously, she has worked as a Disaster Management Specialist at the City of Johannesburg – Disaster Management Centre.
Ms Cecilia Lwiindi Nedziwe-Moyo is the Research Coordinator at the Institute for Pan-African Thought and Conversation. She previously served as a Regional Coordinator at the Centre for Peace Initiatives in Africa (CPIA) in Zimbabwe between 2007 and 2013. She completed her master’s degree in International Studies, Peace, and Conflict Resolution at the University of Queensland in Australia as a Rotary Peace Scholar. She has just completed her doctoral studies at Rhodes University. Her areas of interest include: gender, foreign policy, regional organisations and conflict resolution.
Ms Thembeka Somtseu is a seasoned professional with a background in the textile and construction sectors. She holds a National Diploma in Business Administration from the Durban University of Technology, and studied Development Communication and Media Studies at the University of the Witwatersrand. She worked as a corporate communications specialist for more than ten years, serving in both local and multinational companies.