The Nigeria Diaspora Commission has announced plans to commence an annual National Diaspora Merit Award to recognise and appreciate efforts of Nigerians in the diaspora in national development so as to inspire others.
According to a statement by the commission, the merit award ceremony will take place in 2022.
Part of the objectives of the award is to recognise and celebrate the Nigerians in diaspora who have made contributions and impacted the development of Nigeria, to project them as Diaspora Champions and role models for others to emulate; to change the narratives of the image of Nigeria and Nigerians in the diaspora, and to identify skilled Nigerians in the diaspora who are actively engaged with different sectors of the Nigerian economy.
Categories of Awards
The categories of the National Diaspora Merit Award include those who have excelled or contributed in the following development areas and others:
• Agriculture
• Information Communication Technology (ICT)
• Science Technology and Innovation
• Water Resources
• Finance and Economics
• Youths and Sports
• Oil & Gas / Energy
• Education
• Entertainment, Arts and Tourism
• Hotel and Catering Management
• Housing and Real Estate
• Transportation
• Fashion and Aesthetics
• Philanthropy
• Leadership development
Eligibility Criteria
The National Diaspora Merit Award is open to all Nigerians in the diaspora who have traceable and trackable records proving continuous and consistent impact in development of Nigeria for at least five years in service to national development.
These efforts could be in form of skills, technology transfer, cash and kind donations, philanthropic work, etc all aimed at development. These contributions by diaspora groups or individuals who must be of good character would be recognized.
Modalities
A committee has been set up and is calling for nominations of candidates to screen, to select and recommend to NiDCOM management for recognition. The following are to be considered:
• Nominees must be Nigerians living in the diaspora
• Nominees must be of good character
• Project and programmes must be traceable and trackable
• Contributions of nominees must be consistent for at least five years
Nomination Process
Submission of qualified candidates should be done at nidcom.gov.my/nomination
Call for nomination starts 25th July, 2021.
Closing date for submission of nominations is 25th October, 2021.
The National Diaspora Merit Award Committee will collate the submitted nominees after closure of the portal on 25th October, 2021.
The committee will screen nominees and selection of awards within the time frame of three months (25th October, 2021 – 25th January, 2022). Thereafter, it will submit recommendations to the management of NiDCOM for final confirmation and approval in January 2022.
Award Ceremony
The first National Diaspora Merit Award would be conferred on awardees in 2022.
It would consist of a certificate of Merit and a plaque which should be collected in person at the award dinner.
The National Diaspora Merit Award would be an annual event as part of the National Diaspora Day Celebrations henceforth.