Rwandan Diaspora United Kingdom
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MAPPING THE RWANDAN DIASPORA IN THE UNITED KINGDOM The opinions expressed in the report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout the report do not imply expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IOM concerning legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning its frontiers or boundaries. IOM is committed to the principle that humane and orderly migration benefits migrants and society. As an intergovernmental organization, IOM acts with its partners in the international community to: assist in the meeting of operational challenges of migration; advance understanding of migration issues; encourage social and economic development through migration; and uphold the human dignity and well-being of migrants. __________________________ The African Foundation for Development (AFFORD) is an African diaspora organization established in 1994, with a mission “to expand and enhance the contributions Africans in the diaspora make to African development”. AFFORD runs programmes to support enterprise and employment in Africa, enhance the impact of remittances, build capacity among diaspora groups through training and advocacy, and conduct research on diaspora contributions to development. AFFORD is a registered charity in the United Kingdom. The AFFORD research team for this project were Paul Asquith (Research Coordinator) and Claude Rutsinzi (Principal Researcher). AFFORD Internal peer reviewers included Onyekachi Wambu, Stella Opoku-Owusu and Vincent Gasana (AFFORD Associate, Rwandan journalist based in Kigali). For more information, please visit www.afford-uk.org. Publisher: International Organization for Migration KG 632 St, Gasasa 239 Rugando Cell Kigali, Rwanda Tel.: +250 252 586710 Fax: +250 252 586711 Email: [email protected] Website: www.iom.int _____________________________________________ © 2019 International Organization for Migration (IOM) _____________________________________________ All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior written permission of the publisher. PUB2019/033/EL MAPPING THE RWANDAN DIASPORA IN THE UNITED KINGDOM Conducted by African\ Foundation\for\ Development\ MAPPING THE RWANDAN DIASPORA IN THE UNITED KINGDOM iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The research team wishes to thank the Birmingham and Black Country Rwandan Community Association, Association of Rwandan Organizations in the United Kingdom, West Midlands Rwandan Community Association, Rwanda Hope Foundation, Rwanda Sisterhood Association, and Football for Hope, Peace and Unity for their assistance in this study. The African Foundation for Development (AFFORD) wishes to thank all those in the Rwandan community that gave up their time to participate in, and contribute to, this study. AFFORD also wishes to thank the International Organization for Migration in the United Kingdom, in particular, Jennifer Dew, Sia Kondeh, Myriam Cherti and Tauhid Pasha and the Rwandan High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Her Excellency Yamina Karitanyi, and her team for their support and advice. iv MAPPING THE RWANDAN DIASPORA IN THE UNITED KINGDOM CONTENTS Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................................iii List of figures and tables...........................................................................................................................vi List of acronyms .........................................................................................................................................vii Executive summary and recommendations ...................................................................................viii 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................................1 2. Research objectives, definitions used and methodology used for the study .......................................................................................................................................5 2.1. Research objectives ....................................................................................................................5 2.2. Methodology .................................................................................................................................6 2.2.1. Definitions used ...............................................................................................................6 2.2.2. Master methodology for the four country studies ..........................................7 2.3. Methodology used for the United Kingdom study ......................................................7 2.4. Privacy and ethics .....................................................................................................................10 2.5. Challenges and limitations ....................................................................................................10 3. Desk/Literature review .............................................................................................................15 3.1. Defining the Rwandan diaspora community abroad and framing Rwandan identity ......................................................................................................................15 3.2. Migration history of Rwandan diaspora community in the United Kingdom ........................................................................................................................16 3.3. Population estimates and geographical distributions for Rwandans in the United Kingdom ..........................................................................................................17 3.4. Government of Rwanda’s institutional and policy frameworks for diaspora engagement .....................................................................................................19 3.4.1. Vision 2020 .....................................................................................................................19 3.4.2. Diaspora General Directorate ...............................................................................20 3.4.3. Rwandan “community abroad” policy.................................................................20 4. Analysis of findings: Demographics, education and skills ....................................23 4.1. Demographic information ....................................................................................................24 4.1.1. Gender .............................................................................................................................24 MAPPING THE RWANDAN DIASPORA IN THE UNITED KINGDOM v 4.1.2. Age .....................................................................................................................................24 4.1.3. Marital and family status ...........................................................................................24 4.1.4. Geographical distribution in the United Kingdom ........................................25 4.1.5. Nationality and residence .........................................................................................26 4.1.6. Language use ..................................................................................................................28 4.2. Education, employment and skills .....................................................................................29 4.2.1. Employment ..................................................................................................................32 4.3. Technical and vocational education and training .......................................................35 4.4. Organization of the Rwandan community in the United Kingdom: Social, professional and faith networks ...........................................................................39 5. Analysis of findings: Relationship with Rwanda, voluntarism and return ..........................................................................................................................................43 5.1. Travel to Rwanda ......................................................................................................................43 5.2. Contributions in Rwanda ......................................................................................................45 5.3. Remittances to Rwanda from Rwandans in the United Kingdom ......................48 5.4. Investments in Rwanda ..........................................................................................................54 5.5. Diaspora bond targeting Rwandan community abroad ..........................................56 5.6. Engagement with the Government of Rwanda’s policies and initiatives ..........57 5.7. Rwandan women in the United Kingdom .....................................................................59 5.8. Being Rwandan in the United Kingdom .........................................................................60 6. Conclusion and recommendations ....................................................................................63 Annex 1 – Survey tools .......................................................................................................................69