London. (News of The South) A UK based Zimbabwean medical Doctor and GP Dr Sylvester Nyatsuro has founded the Zimbabwe Diaspora Network (ZDSN) an organization to help rebuild and strengthen Zimbabwe.
The organization was founded on May 2 in Nottingham where Dr Nyatsuro is based, his wife Veronica Nyatsuro also helps in running the organisation.
Dr Nyatsuro also runs a weight loss clinic and is the first ever General Practitioner in the United Kingdom to spearhead the American Society of Bariatric Physicians, an association of specialist doctors in the area of weight loss and management.
Doctor Nyatsuro qualified almost 20 years ago at the University of Zimbabwe (UZ) medical school. He specialised in General Practice and is a member of the Royal College of General Practitioners. He has owned a Medical Centre in Nottingham for the last 12 years. His interests are in Primary Healthcare and is in the Clinical Cabinet of the NHS Clinical Commissioning Group.
He holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Medical Education amongst other medical diplomas and is involved in the training of doctors who are specialising to become General Practitioners. Dr Nyatsuro is a passionate about Public Health and hence a Masters Degree in Public Health (Management and Leadership – Sheffield University).
Dr Nyatsuro has a keen interest in the Zimbabwean healthcare system and has been actively involved when ever he visits the country.
According to Dr Nyatsuro : “The Zimbabwean community in the diaspora is diverse, and hardworking, well- educated,very entrepreneurial. The group includes successful doctors, engineers, educators, nurses, lawyers, restaurateurs, social workers and labourers amongst others. Regardless of their professionals background most of them are happy to share their skills with the home country, hence the creation of the DSN”.
The organization is not affiliated to any political parties in or outside Zimbabwe.
“Our aim is to facilitate and put structures and processes that will enable the local Zimbabweans to tap into this knowledge, skills and talent base to revitalize both the public and private sector institutions in Zimbabwe” added Dr Nyatsuro.
ZDSN offers an opportunity for Zimbabweans from all walks of life to return to Zimbabwe voluntarily, to share expertise and help with the development of the country on a permanent or temporary basis spreading skills and knowledge among local professionals.
It has been noted with great concern that the Zimbabwe Diaspora group does not only generously support their families finically by sending money form abroad but most also visit Zimbabwe regularly. During these visits, skills can be shared with the home country.
The Zimbabwean Diaspora is able to support Zimbabwe beyond just remittances. Apart from benefiting from the remittance that Diaspora Communities contribute, Zimbabwe can also benefit if the skills from the Diaspora Community is harnessed.
DSN has created a professionals database of professionals who are happy to share their skills during their visits to Zimbabwe.
Currently there is no comprehensive database of professional in the diaspora .The organization has organized these professionals and they are linked to various organizations in Zimbabwe according to o their skill set. Diaspora through mobilization of these skill sets brain gain will take place counter balancing the Brain drain, a problem Zimbabwe faced a few years ago.
The DSN has offered a platform for the diaspora communities to make a difference by giving back to Zimbabwe.
Through ZDSN there will be a facilitation of knowledge and technology transfer initiatives, by establishing linkages with relevant institutions or organizations public or private in Zimbabwe.
ZDSN will identify challenges and opportunities associated with the existing policies and directives related with the Diaspora overall engagement in Zimbabwe. This will then lead to working hard with partners in and outside Zimbabwe to eliminate the barriers in order for the country to benefit as a whole.
To give back to Zimbabwe all that professionals need to do is to register on the website www.diasporaskills.org
When they offer their skills and services in Zimbabwe it will be on a voluntary basis and no charges will be incurred.
Zimbabwe is set to benefit from the tapping into the skills of its emigrant professionals and non-professionals in order to improve the quality of training programs through arranged voluntary work by Diaspora professionals abroad. This will in turn partly solve the brain drain problems created by migration.
This can be done through short term engagements in both the public and private sectors of Zimbabwe with the aim easing the manpower problems in the country. All skilled and qualified professionals, trainers or lecturers can get involved in this new and exciting programme and give as little as a day or longer to help in this great effort.
Zimbabweans from all walks of life who are in the diaspora will easily be able to participate in the government Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation (Zim Asset) project.
For more information contact: www.diasporaskills.org
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