Advancing diaspora engagement for health systems resilience in fragile and shock-prone settings

Diaspora

Health financing

Lebanon

Nepal

Sierra Leone

Sudan

Case studies

2026

What problem is being addressed?

Diaspora communities play an important role in supporting health systems, particularly in fragile and shock-prone settings (FASPs). Evidence from ReBUILD for Resilience country case studies (see ‘further information’) has consistently shown that diaspora contribute immensely to health systems through financial resources, service delivery, knowledge exchange and links between local and global networks.

However, this role is not well understood, documented or supported. There is limited research on how diaspora engagement contributes to health system resilience, especially in fragile settings. Existing evidence is often ad hoc anecdotal documentation of diaspora contributions and with limited guidance for policy or practice. At the same time, interest in diaspora engagement is growing. Governments and regional bodies are increasingly looking to partner with diaspora in strengthening health systems, particularly in the context of aid volatility. However, there is little practical, evidence-based guidance to help Ministries of Health and other actors design effective and coordinated approaches. As a result, diaspora engagement is often ad hoc and not fully aligned with national health priorities.

What we have done

Since the inception of this work, the project has aimed to address these gaps by advancing scholarship, strengthening the evidence base for policy and practice, and shaping global discourse on diaspora engagement for resilience of health systems in FASPs.

Given the recent emergence of this field, a key objective has been to build the initial evidence base. ReBUILD researchers have produced what is, to our knowledge, the first structured body of work in this field, intended to catalyse further academic and policy engagement. This included a commentary in the BMJ Global Health setting out why diaspora matter for health systems resilience and a scoping review in Social Science and Medicine – Health Systems mapping existing evidence and identifying key gaps. Building on this, ReBUILD has partnered with BMJ Global Health to develop a forthcoming supplement on diaspora and health systems resilience in fragile settings which includes four country case studies, a cross-cutting analysis, a policy and practice paper, and an editorial.

Alongside this, ReBUILD researchers have actively contributed to global and regional dialogue. This has included engagement with Global Health Partnerships, WHO and IOM to build momentum and actively explore how emerging evidence can inform ongoing global policy processes on diaspora engagement, including presenting initial findings in a global webinar in November and at the Global Health Partnership workshop in London in March 2026.

At the regional level, ReBUILD researchers are contributing to discussions led by the League of Arab States and the Council of Arab Ministers of Health. The first Arab conference on “The Role of the Arab Diaspora in Supporting Health Systems”, convened in 2024, led to the Amman Declaration, which commits 22 Ministers of Health to develop national diaspora engagement strategies. ReBUILD-affiliated researcher Dr Elsheikh Badr, is supporting the development of this agenda ahead of the 2026 regional summit, where evidence from several of the case studies will be presented. ReBUILD researchers are also aiming to convene a session at Health Systems Global 2026 with regional stakeholders (including WHO EMRO and the Arab Board of Health Specialisations) to identify practical steps for strengthening diaspora engagement.

At country level, several ReBUILD researchers are working directly with policymakers to support the translation of the emerging evidence to practice:

Nepal: Findings were presented at the Health Conclave 2024 (“Coordinating diaspora for strengthening healthcare”), contributing to national discussions on how to better coordinate diaspora engagement and in Nepali Migrant’s Global Health Summit, 2025 (“Diaspora’s contribution for health systems resilience”).

Sudan: Following engagement with senior government officials and the Federal Ministry of Health, ReBUILD-affiliated researchers are supporting the development of a national diaspora engagement programme, informed by evidence from the Sudan case study.

Sierra Leone: Findings were presented at the National Evidence Summit in February 2026. Researchers are now working with policymakers, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to support the use of evidence in strengthening diaspora engagement approaches. Findings were presented to the Deputy Minister of Health in March, who requested further sharing with directors at the Ministry of Health and partners.

Lebanon: Researchers presented findings to a national workshop held by a major Lebanese diaspora organisation in 2025, feeding into discussions on how best to organise to support the health system.

Impact

This work has helped to position diaspora engagement as an important area for health systems strengthening and resilience in FASPs. It has established an initial evidence base in an emerging area and is contributing to growing global, regional and national policy momentum on diaspora engagement for strong and resilient health systems. At country level, the work is supporting early steps towards more coordinated and evidence-informed approaches to diaspora engagement. This includes direct contributions to policy development and ongoing collaboration with government stakeholders. More broadly, the work is helping to shift how diaspora are understood – from ad hoc responders or contributors to recognised partners in health systems resilience.