IOM Program for the Return and Reintegration of Qualified African Nationals-Phase 3
Project / Program Summary

* Eleven target countries -- Angola, Cape Verde, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe. Other African countries are also assisted on a non-target country basis.

1. Objectives
   • To strengthen the human resources base of recipient African countries that suffer from deficiencies in vital human resources, thereby complementing and reinforcing the countries' on-going and future development efforts
   • To support the capacity building process and institutional development of the receiving countries
   • To strengthen an indigenous institutional framework with a view to facilitating the return and reintegration of qualified nationals from industrialised countries and from within Africa
   • To enhance the role and utilisation of highly qualified, qualified and skilled African personnel in the development process of participating countries
2. Activities / contents
   The major programme activities are as follows:
   • Identifying priority employment sectors to be strengthened, including self-employment opportunities
   • Identifying job vacancies in cooperation with various private and state enterprises and government administration
   • Identifying, screening, selecting and recruiting appropriate candidates based on the set guidelines
   • Conducting training of government counterparts in main target countries in the recruitment, placement and follow-up activities
   • Consulting with authorities for further institutionalisation and sustainability of the project involving them directly in project implementation
   • Conducting training for returnees as part of reintegration process
   • Assisting and assessing the return and reintegration process
   • Creating Support Groups, comprised of experts of human resource management and development, which advise on critical manpower shortage
3. Expected outcomes / impacts
   The project aims to return and place 631 qualified African nationals in the priority public and economic sectors in the development process of the participating countries.
   As of 15 August 1998, 454 highly qualified and skilled African nationals residing mainly in industrialised countries recruited and placed in the target countries. The number of self-employed returnees has increased as a result of an added focus in the Phase III.
4. Features in line with the Agenda for Action
   This programme would be most relevant in the Agenda to the field of economic development with its focus on human resources development. Capacity building of participating governments is emphasised to ensure the sustainability of the programme. This is realised directly through the return of highly skilled nationals to be placed in the key sectors of societies, as well as through the participation of public and private sectors in the implementation process of the programmes.
   The programme was originally initiated in 1982 as a response to a concern expressed by many African governments over the outflow of qualified nationals. In the regional context, this programme has been recognised and supported by the Organisation of African Unity and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, and IOM also co-operates with the United Nations Development Programme in the return of qualified Africans.
   The programme is the continuation and extension of the previous phases implemented under Lomé II, and then Lomé III. As a result of an external evaluation and the second evaluation seminar held in Harare in February 1992, the phase III shifted its approach from merely countering the "brain drain" to concentrate first and foremost on essential manpower deficiencies within the priority sectors of recipient governments in order to effectively respond to the most critical manpower needs.

Mr. Pasquale Lupoli
International Organisation for Migration
Sub-Regional Office for Central & East Africa
International House - 3rd Floor
Mama Ngina Street
P.O. Box 55040
Nairobi, KENYA
Tel: +254-2-340295 : +254-2-340296
Fax: +254-2-333987
Email: SRONairobi@iom.int