One reason you know Mama Diaspora and other Nigerian elites aren't serious about the diaspora (and @cchukudebelu talks about this often) is that diaspora-building gets harder as communities get more acculturated into the new country and ties to the old one become more distant.

Mass emigration from Nigeria as we think of it today didn't start until the late 1970s. This means the bulk of Nigeria's diaspora (particularly in the West) is still within four, maybe five major cohorts. The window of opportunity to build ties still exists but is fast closing.

I like to use my extended family across the UK, US, Canada and Europe as an example. some of my nieces and nephews are 3rd gen, right? Nigeria is already an abstraction for some of their parents, let alone them. Ties are likely to weaken further for their own kids, and beyond.

It's unrealistic to think remittances and photo-ops with visiting Nigerian officials alone will sustain ties between the homeland & diaspora. Long Twitter threads and " #proudlyNigerian " tweets about strangers with little emotional connection to Nigeria won't do it, either.

If anything substantive is going to emerge from "tapping into the diaspora", the work should begin now. Mass repatriation of Nigeria's diaspora is pretty much impossible, so the next best thing ought to be investments, diaspora voting and other forms of transnational engagement.

Looking around, there's little to suggest governments are thinking about any of this. Nigeria's political, security & investment climate remains nightmarish. Diasporans have taken note and are voting with their $$$. Afterall, Nigeria needs them far more than they need Nigeria.