Since we would like to submit the final document to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on or before 31st May we would appreciate if the compiled document is forwarded to this Embassy on or before 30th May, 2012NairimasDiaspora DeskEmbassy of the Republic of Kenya
2249 R St NWWashington, DC 20008
Phone - (202) 387-6101
1. Generalities: The
document, in its current form, is too general, making the considered outcomes
blurred and unclear – from St Louis; Utah; Chicago.
2. Citizenship.
The Constitution of Kenya, 2010 has appropriately put in place necessary
statutory provisions to provide for dual citizenship. This will enable Kenyans
in Diaspora to access rights, privileges and obligations of citizenship for
both the host country and Kenya. Kenyans who will not be able to enjoy dual
citizenship due to non-acceptance of such arrangements may be granted an
‘Overseas Citizenship Card’ which will guarantee them a ‘visa for life’ to come
visit Kenya, as often as they wish. Is Overseas Citizenship Card provided for
in the new constitution? If yes, what obligations are placed on its holders?
E.g. must they pay Kenya taxes, must they visit Kenya at least in so many
years? Are their offspring Kenyans? The
Kenyan Embassy in the US should provide information to Kenyans in the Diaspora
on how to smooth the process of applying for dual citizenship. Clear
and specific details are needed regarding dual citizenship. Most Diaspora do
not know what the correct Government stipulation is regarding dual citizenship
– from World
Bank; Utah; Chicago
3. Resources: Sources
of manpower, financial commitments, and timeframe (for implementation,
benchmarks etc) to achieve goals are lacking. There is no provision for the
financial costs of implementing the systems and services discussed in this
policy. While it is implied that
there is a need to tap into the Diaspora remittances it is unclear if this is
the intended source of funding for the cause -- from St Louis; Utah; Chicago; Atlanta
4. Monitoring &
Evaluation: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs
(NADICOK) should not be both an implementer/facilitator and at the same time be
in charge of monitoring and evaluation (M & E) of the implementation of the
issues in the Diaspora policy document. A completely different oversight
institution should be identified to do the M & E. The document should also explicitly provide who/which
department will measure the outcomes.
There lacks any explicit or implicit mention of an external
accountability structure for the proposed organization that would oversee
Diaspora matters (NADICOK) -- from St Louis; Utah, Chicago; Atlanta.
5. Diaspora representation: The
document is silent on the Diaspora representation at the institutions of
governance i.e., a section should be added to address “Representation of the Kenyan Diaspora in
public offices e.g. political offices, in Kenya.” Some thought needs to be given to the
political representation of Kenyans in the Diaspora as a political
constituency, i.e. beyond voting. Mechanism for Diaspora representation in the
policy making organs in the country, on matters affecting diaspora's. The Diaspora should receive one of the
special interest group nominations as accorded by the constitution. -- from St Louis; Utah; World Bank;
Atlanta.
6. General elections: The
government should be engaging the Diaspora in establishing modalities to
register voters and to determine convenient polling stations, to participate in
general elections. Voting regions should be established across the World
regions where Kenyans reside -- from St Louis; Utah; Chicago;
Atlanta.
7.
Gok
feedbacks: The Diaspora expects feedback from the government
regarding this Diaspora Policy document and our comments by communicated
through the respective Diaspora Advisory Council Chapters and/or our local
Kenyan Community leaders. Getting feedback within a reasonable time (end of
June, 2012) will be a great encouragement to Diaspora members to continue
contributing to our homeland in collaborating with the government through the
Embassy -- from St Louis,
8.
Conferences/Workshops:
The Government, through the Embassy, should organize regular conferences and
have representatives from all Kenyan Communities in the Diaspora to make
follow-ups on Diaspora issues -- from
Utah.
9.
Diaspora benefits: Modalities, security and
management of benefits for the Diaspora should be included in the
document. Harmonized Benefits on
Return to Kenya. All Kenyans should be treated equally, as Citizens when they
return home - –
from Utah; Chicago; World Bank.
10.
Status of Diaspora: Policy should address
illegal status issues of Kenyans in Diaspora. What can the GoK
actually do in providing “protection” for undocumented persons in the
Diaspora? What incentives are
there for undocumented persons to register with Foreign Missions? The
policy should address how it will reach out and woo skeptical Kenyans. Outreach to the Kenyan public to
educate them on the role of the Diaspora – from Utah; Chicago; World Bank.
11.
Diaspora
travel home: The draft ought to address more issues affecting
Kenyans traveling home. These include senseless duty levied on items brought
into Kenya by Diaspora Kenyans. –
Utah; Chicago
12. Tourism:
The GoK should actively promote Kenyan
tourism in the US (advertisements, reliable websites, etc.) to counteract the
negative images spewed by the media. The initiative should do better in
providing information to visitors and people intending to do business in Kenya,
export goods, obtain services, or buy commodities from Kenya. Lack of proper
information often leads to wastage of time and other resources. The free market
should be the determining factor for/on tourism. A web portal would be a great
place to advertise tenders so that Kenyans in Diaspora, within this industry,
can vie for them. Foreign Missions
should have a list of reliable tourism agencies that are registered and
accredited/certified in order to inspire confidence in Diaspora members when
they promote Kenyan tourism. –
from Utah; Chicago; Atlanta.
13. Jobs databank: An
up to date job bank is needed, targeting Diaspora Kenyans. Some of them are
willing to go work at home but did not know who was hiring and/or what is
required to land such jobs. – Utah; Chicago
14. TOEFL: The
initiative should address the TOEFL requirement: Kenya as an English-speaking
country should have its students exempted from TOEFL. Ugandan students, for
instance, were not required to take TOEFL exams in preparation for attending
college in USA. – from Utah; Chicago
15. Taxation: The
document needs a clause to discuss Kenya’s tax laws in relation to Diaspora
Kenyans, exemptions, exceptions, bilateral tax code and standard fee
agreements. Taxes may be some of the greatest constraint on investments in
Kenya by Kenyans in the Diaspora. Though the draft does not clarify if the
intention is to tax the remittances, it is alluded to. Members of the Diaspora
stated unequivocally that it is grossly unfair that the funds sent should be
taxed especially since they are already taxed as income in the host country as
well as utilized in a manner that contributes to the payment of taxes be it
through VAT (Value Added Tax) or payment of property taxes. This was also cited
as the reason why the funds should continue to remain exempt from any
additional taxation. The GoK should think of a way the Diaspora could make contributions to
retirement schemes such as NSSF etc. Some in the Diaspora left their savings in
NSSF already and if there is a way for them to continue contributing to their
accounts that would be great – especially if possible using online services
that would enable the real-time/online account monitoring etc. Efficient,
dependable, transparent and affordable remission mechanism/system would be
handy. How will the GoK ensure that social security remittance/transfer to
Kenya is not taxed again by the GoK? Bear in mind, the Diaspora are already
taxed on their social security.
How will the GoK ensure that remittances/transfers are secure? –
from Atlanta; Utah; Chicago; World Bank.
16. Safety of Diaspora: Policy
draft was weak in addressing the safety of Kenyans in foreign countries. There
had been many reports of Kenyan women being lured into prostitution and
slavery, and other Kenyans being persecuted to death. . – from Utah; Chicago; World Bank.
17. Website: Need
for a webpage from which Kenyans in the Diaspora could obtain access to
information. The page could also provide answers to frequently asked questions
(FAQs). – from Utah;
Chicago
18.
Diaspora information: Many Kenyans in the Diaspora are
sensitive about providing the GoK with information that would allow the GoK to
“track” them. Information to do
with income is problematic. The
amount of information collected by the GoK should be limited in scope, and more
detailed information may be collected via voluntary, anonymous surveys
(disseminated by local Diaspora organizations. The draft should address measures that will be undertaken to ensure
privacy and security of database for personal information hosted in the
proposed database. There needs to be protection and confidentiality of the data
and information collected from the Diaspora members by the government,
"not transferred to third party". The proposed creation of a database
whose purpose would include tapping into available Diaspora skills is
practicable. However in other
areas there is no clear indication of how the Diaspora would be involved. – from Utah; Chicago; World Bank;
Atlanta.
19. Consulates: More Consulates needed to enhance services to
Diaspora. Consular services need to be expanded, with a more robust menu of
services – from
Utah; Chicago; Atlanta.
20. Agencies: Critical
agencies such as the Ministry of Health are not included in the list of
implementing agencies identified to roll-out the policy. For example, many Kenyan health workers
have been and continue to be recruited for jobs outside Kenya. The Government needs to look at the
implications of this on how these Kenyans are treated e.g. what is the
accreditation process they encounter?
Is there potential for training institutions in Kenya to get accredited
to train internationally accepted workers? Should the training policy take into account both the local
needs as well as for the external market?
How can doctors and other health care specialists (many of whom obtained
their initial training in Kenya) contribute to Kenyan health services? What about the cost and quality of
health care services in Kenya to reduce the requests for health support (often
staggering) to family and friends? – from World Bank; Utah;
21. Diaspora skills: In tapping Diaspora skills, the GoK should devise a
mechanism of enabling consultancy services involving/including expertise in the
Diaspora --including Govt jobs too.
a.
What is the GoK doing to ensure that persons in the Diaspora can compete
fairly for opportunities in Kenya that would allow them to utilize their
skills?
b.
Websites advertising opportunities need to be updated on a regular basis.
c.
Openness and transparency in recruitment/selection processes.
It
would be useful to present Kenyans in the Diaspora more positively, as an
enterprising group of people looking for opportunities to enhance and use their
skills (across a broad spectrum of education and income levels) – from Utah; World
Bank;
22. Incentives: Incentives
for Kenyan owned businesses outside Kenya need to be addressed explicitly in
the policy. Government policies need to focus on improving those areas of
service provision that is diverting potential investment funds from the
Diaspora. What incentives can be
put in place to provide incentives for Kenyan owned businesses, selling Kenyan
products abroad? Similarly, what
incentives can be provided for Kenyans who would like to start/move a business
to Kenya? Diaspora should have full rights to do business without government
interference. The Diaspora as a human resource that can contribute positively
and greatly to the development of Kenya.
However, the effort to distribute the policy to Kenyans in the Diaspora
appears wanting. – from World Bank; Utah; Atlanta.
23. Education: The policy should explore educational cost
agreements between Kenya and other countries. Such arrangements have been
entered by other countries; Diaspora Kenyans will have a chance of paying
college tuition and fees at local rates in countries where they live. The Ministry of
Education should send delegates to institutions of higher education to
negotiate lower tuition rates for students. Aggressive advocacy is needed with regard to testing
requirements for Kenyan students (recognize Kenya as an English-speaking
country in order to waive TOEFL requirements). Repayment of educational loans
should be simplified for Kenyans in the Diaspora (reasonable late fees and
penalties, better communication, better customer service, payment plans). Students
in the Diaspora should be allocated a percentage of internships in Kenya. Foreign Missions should put together
regularly-updated websites with information about scholarships available to
Kenyan students in the Diaspora – from Chicago; Utah.
24. Intellectual Property: safeguards should
be implemented in order to protect Kenyan innovation (jiko, “kikoy,”
etc.). The Kenyan Patent Office
should provide advice to Kenyans in the Diaspora on how protect their
intellectual property. -- from Utah
25. Absentee landlords. The absentee
landlords’ properties should not be tampered with the way the trend has been in
Kenya. All Diaspora who decide to invest e.g. in land, real estate etc should
be assured of safety of their property.
In addition, the GoK could appoint or accredit a group of genuine, registered real estate agents
whose services the Diaspora could utilize to purchase/acquire property – not
through quarks who then turn around and sell the Diaspora’s hard earned
property – the trend has been VERY worrying and scaring! – from
Utah
26. Research and
development (R&D): The policy document needs to device a
mechanism on how the GoK can work in collaboration with the Diaspora to promote
meaningful R & D projects in Kenya. – from Utah.
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