African by Design: Capturing Diaspora Expertise to Fuel Local Solutions

The Beta Collective, in partnership with SAID, is hosting an engaging 3-hour Design Jam under the theme "African by Design." This pre-event will precede our flagship innovation conference, Catalyze 2025. The session will focus on one of SAID’s key pillars, Knowledge Remittance, exploring and developing innovative concepts around capturing and leveraging diaspora expertise for locally driven African solutions.

Event Objective

To align participants deeply on the challenge of diaspora–local knowledge exchange and rapidly ideate actionable solutions or concepts. Outcomes from this session will feed directly into the Catalyze 2025 conference and be published as a cross-collaboration with SAID.

Central Challenge Statement

"How might we intentionally activate and sustain knowledge remittance between diaspora professionals and African innovators to accelerate locally driven solutions?"

Event Structure

Segment 1: Panel Discussion (40 minutes)

Unlocking Knowledge Remittance: Exploring Realities, Myths, and Opportunities

A curated panel of 2–3 experts (diaspora professional, local innovation ecosystem leader, diaspora studies expert) will share insights on:

• Definitions and value of knowledge remittance
• Common misconceptions about diaspora–local collaboration
• Practical barriers encountered
• Factors enabling effective and sustainable collaboration

Segment 2: Rapid Problem Alignment (30 minutes)

Teams unpack insights from the panel to identify and clearly define:

• Key stakeholders and actors
• Real-world barriers to knowledge transfer
• Conditions required for effective collaborationsTeams conclude this phase with refined problem statements.

Segment 3: Ideation & Concept Development (40 minutes)

Participants quickly generate diverse solutions or concepts based on their refined problem statements.

Segment 4: Concept Pitches & Feedback (20 minutes)

Each team presents a concise pitch (2 minutes per team) to share their ideas, receive peer feedback, and identify standout solutions.

Segment 5: Closing & Next Steps (20 minutes)

A facilitated voting exercise will select top concepts for showcasing at Catalyze 2025. Participants are encouraged to commit to actionable next steps.

Desired Outcomes

• Clearly defined and actionable solutions/concepts for knowledge remittance
• Deepened shared understanding of diaspora–local collaboration challenges and opportunities
• Tangible outputs to be showcased at Catalyze 2025, enhancing participant engagement and continuity between events

Host or Publisher The Beta Collective