Abuja Investments Company Limited Group Managing Director Maureen Tamuno has urged African governments and institutions to build stronger, transparent partnerships with the diaspora to attract productive investment, expertise and enterprise development.
Tamuno delivered the keynote address at the seventh Diaspora Africa Conference in Abuja, themed “Homecoming: Bridging the Divide from Diaspora to Africa’s Future.” She said reconnecting with ancestral roots should lead to lasting economic and professional relationships rather than symbolic declarations.
Drawing on her previous diplomatic service as Nigeria’s High Commissioner to Jamaica, with concurrent accreditation to other Caribbean countries, she argued that diaspora contributions extend beyond remittances to skills, business networks, technology and mentorship.
Tamuno identified trust, capital, skills, identity and policy as five essential bridges for cooperation. She called for accessible investment information, digital public systems, independently verifiable transactions and credible institutions.
“Patriotism should inspire an investment; it must never replace due diligence,” she said, warning that cultural ties cannot substitute for legal safeguards or sound financial assessment.
The AICL chief highlighted opportunities in real estate, markets, transportation, infrastructure, entertainment and the creative economy in the Federal Capital Territory. She invited investors and entrepreneurs to explore structured partnerships capable of producing both financial and social returns.
She also advocated participation by women, young people and persons with disabilities, and proposed a 12-month Homecoming Partnership Compact to measure partnerships formed, enterprises supported, people trained and jobs sustained.
Her central message was that diaspora engagement should be judged by operating businesses, responsible investments and demonstrable benefits rather than announcements alone. The proposed compact remains a recommendation requiring adoption and implementation by participating institutions.
