Diaspora Summit 2026
Berlin
From 16 to 18 April 2026, GAaNF took part in the Diaspora Summit 2026 in Berlin. The summit brought together diaspora organisations, people with migration backgrounds engaged in development policy work, political decision-makers, and representatives of federal ministries to discuss the challenges faced by volunteer diaspora activists and to work toward practical solutions.
The three-day programme offered space for dialogue, exchange, workshops and networking across important venues, including the Bundestag / Paul-Löbe-Haus, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and Berlin Global Village.
For Giving Africa a New Face (GAaNF) e.V., participation in the summit was an important opportunity to contribute to discussions on diaspora engagement, development cooperation and inclusive policy-making. The event highlighted the value of diaspora voices in shaping agendas, sharing realities from practice, and building stronger partnerships for the future.
GAaNF was proud to be part of this space and to exchange with other organisations and stakeholders committed to strengthening diaspora participation in development policy and social change.
GAaNF joined a LinkedIn Live conversation hosted by Diaspora Beyond 2030, featuring Kabilan Thavachelvan, on the topic of social entrepreneurship between self-exploitation and the hope of great success.
The discussion offered an honest and necessary reflection on the realities behind mission-driven work. While social entrepreneurship is often presented as inspiring and impact-oriented, the conversation also highlighted the pressure, personal commitment, emotional labour and sustainability challenges that often come with this kind of work.
For GAaNF, the exchange was especially relevant because many community-led and diaspora-driven initiatives operate in exactly this space: between purpose and limited resources, between social responsibility and personal capacity, and between the desire to create meaningful change and the need to protect long-term wellbeing.
The conversation created space to reflect on how social entrepreneurship can be supported in a more realistic, sustainable and human-centred way. It also underlined the importance of speaking more openly about the conditions under which social impact work takes place.
GAaNF valued the opportunity to engage with this topic and to contribute to broader conversations on social innovation, diaspora engagement and community-led change.
