Diaspora Networks and Investments in Nigeria

Abstract

Networks are important systems that impact multiple aspects of economic activities such as investments, businesses, innovation, and entrepreneurship skills. However, there is scant literature examining the crucial networks needed to inform diasporas’ decisions and oversee businesses/investments in their countries of origin. Using social network theory, the primary data for this article were gathered using in-depth interviews from 2019 to 2020. This is in addition to the authors’ primary insights over more than three decades into migration trajectories, diaspora existentialities, and investment domains in Nigeria. Findings suggest that some diasporas involve their networks such as family members and friends in their investment decision-making processes and eventual investments, while others have mistrust for their networks with implications for real investment choices and eventual outcomes. This article clearly shows that the diaspora networks within their investments’ thresholds, the roles of significant others, and the challenges of the diaspora are highly dynamic and ambivalent, as demonstrated through the Nigerian experience.