The Welsh diaspora has been abandoned

Dr Huw Evans

There is a need for a coherent and effective Welsh diaspora engagement strategy. Furthermore, this should have cross-party and stakeholder support.

In November 2025 I wrote that the Welsh Government had been found wanting on diaspora engagement. Events (or, more accurately, the lack of them) since then have confirmed that position. The Welsh Government diaspora engagement action plan lapsed at the end of 2025. It has not been replaced.

Defining the diaspora

We first need to define who we mean when talking about the diaspora. The Oxford English Dictionary refers to diaspora as people who have spread, or have been dispersed, from their homeland: e.g. Welsh people who are not now in Wales.  

More depth is needed, especially about what is meant by ‘people’; we will return later to ‘homeland and ‘dispersal’.

Adapting the definition used in the Cornwall diaspora strategy, the Welsh diaspora could be described as Welsh people living outside Wales who are Welsh by birth, ancestry, or choice. 

Welsh by birth is unproblematic; it is people born in Wales. Welsh by ancestry is straightforward when it comes to people whose parents or grandparents were born in Wales. Beyond that, possibly, it is not so clear. 

However, ‘Welsh by choice’ is the default limb. It includes people with uncertain ancestry, those who grew up or studied in Wales, and individuals without prior ties to Wales who connect through marriage. ‘Welsh by choice’ might also apply to a Patagonia resident because of Welsh cultural connections.

This definition is favoured because it is inclusive and not ethnically constrained. 

The Welsh action plan’s definition was flawed because it only covered people living outside the UK, missing Welsh people in other parts of the UK, such as London.

Diaspora value

I compare the diaspora to family, using ‘civil kinship’ for both diaspora and homeland populations. The diaspora is an extension of family, and this civil kinship can be valued for cultural, social, economic, or other reasons. 

As to the benefits, the Cornish strategy refers to ‘diaspora capital’. It states that diaspora capital ‘come[s] in three flows – flows of people, knowledge and finance – which create different forms of diaspora capital. These are diaspora cultural, economic, human and social capital.’ 

As to potential economic benefits see, for example, Brain Drain to Brain Gain: Mobilising the Welsh diaspora as agents of economic change. 

The civil kinship lens also enables a two-way exchange between the diaspora and homeland.  This is important because it means that both sides of the kinship can benefit. Global Welsh estimates that the Welsh diaspora community is more than three million, meaning that the civil kinship community is over six million.

How is the diaspora to be engaged?   

The diaspora can be engaged through the development of sustainable connections within the kinship. Social infrastructures or networks are an example. These connections can develop organically but not always. So, there must be some planning but working with, and not against, the efforts of others to facilitate those connections. 

The Cornish strategy and Welsh action plan are examples of planning. The mission statement of the Cornish diaspora strategy illustrates this. It is to: ‘Establish a sustainable and inclusive foundational architecture and operational framework for engaging Cornwall’s diaspora, fostering meaningful connections that deliver lasting benefits for both Cornish communities at home and across the world.’

The strategy takes the mission forward and explains the detail about how it is envisaged the mission can be realised. Ireland is routinely cited as an example of successful engagement with its diaspora. Unsurprisingly, it has its own diaspora strategy.  

The Welsh Government’s action plan excluded diaspora members within the UK but outside Wales. A unified diaspora strategy is needed to include all diaspora, whether based in the UK or abroad. This approach could integrate with the international strategy while also coordinating activities within the UK beyond Wales.

Why a strategy should be uncontroversial 

The term ‘homeland’ can be interpreted as simply referring to Wales as a geographical area with which people identify, without suggesting any particular status.

Desiring to boost these capital flows between diaspora and homeland communities isn’t limited to those seeking Welsh independence; unionists, devolved, or federal supporters can also feel connected to the homeland within the UK.   

A diaspora strategy can be created with broad political support and remain effective regardless of future Welsh Government changes. It should also involve collaboration with relevant stakeholders. By way of comparison, the Cornish strategy seems to be broadly ‘owned’ and supported by a range of interested parties.    

Reducing ‘dispersal’ 

The diaspora dictionary definition refers to people dispersed from their homeland. Often this will be due to economic coercion through limited homeland opportunities. Engaging with the diaspora can help shape policies that reduce forced dispersal by leveraging diaspora capital; for instance, attracting investment that increases economic opportunities in the homeland.

What next? 

There is a Senedd election in May and there should be cross-party commitment for a diaspora strategy irrespective of the election’s outcome. With the lapse of the action plan, effectively, the diaspora community has been abandoned. There must be a recommitment to that community, part of which can be done through a coherent and effective diaspora strategy.