Diasporas, Remittances and Africa South of the Sahara

This research paper examines the relationship between remittances and political influence in Cape Verde, the Comores, and Lesotho. It argues that the political weight of a diaspora is not determined by its size or the volume of remittances, but rather by the organization of the recipient state and its capacity to capitalize on diaspora contributions.

• There is no automatic correlation between the volume of remittances received by a country and the political influence exerted by its diaspora. While remittances provide essential survival means for families, they cannot be easily used as diplomatic tools to pressure authoritarian regimes, unlike foreign aid which can be adjusted to reward or sanction governments.
• In Cape Verde, the diaspora played a role in ending the one-party system in 1991 and supporting the struggle for independence from Portugal. However, the diaspora is politically fragmented by regionalism and generation; older migrants in the US tended to support the PAICV, while younger migrants in Europe often supported the opposition.
• The Comorian diaspora is characterized as highly disorganized and fragmented, reflecting the social and political divisions of the islands. This fragmentation, combined with the dispersion of migrants across France, the Gulf, and East Africa, has prevented the formation of a unified political lobby.
• Basotho migrants in South Africa generally do not view themselves as a diaspora due to the lack of historical immigration controls and their status as inhabitants of an enclave country. While they lack a coordinated political lobby, a significant portion of Basotho migrants and residents support political integration or incorporation into South Africa.
• The political effectiveness of a diaspora is primarily determined by the organization of the homeland state. Cape Verde is cited as the most successful example, having established the Instituto de Apoio e Protecção ao Emigrante in 1986 (renamed Instituto das Comunidades in 2001) to support migrant communities and granting the diaspora specific seats in parliament.
• Remittances can reinforce existing social inequalities within the recipient country. In Cape Verde, wealthier islands like Boa Vista and São Nicolau received more funding from the diaspora, whereas poorer agricultural islands like Santo Antão received less because their migrants were low-earning casual laborers.

APA

Institute for Security Studies (n.d.). Diasporas, Remittances and Africa South of the Sahara. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/112CHAP2.PDF

Chicago

Institute for Security Studies. Diasporas, Remittances and Africa South of the Sahara. n.d. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/112CHAP2.PDF.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Security Studies |title=Diasporas, Remittances and Africa South of the Sahara |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/112CHAP2.PDF |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforsecuritystudiesnddiasporas, author = {{Institute for Security Studies}}, title = {{Diasporas, Remittances and Africa South of the Sahara}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/112CHAP2.PDF}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }