It takes as long as three generations of hard work, three generations of sacrifice – Happy Independence!

During the early period of the armed struggle, Eritrean communities in the Middle East, Europe, North America and as far away as Australia had integrated into Eritrea’s quest for self-determination and national viability, as source of moral and material support.

At first such communities were mainly comprised of students sent abroad on scholarships to the Middle East in the 1950s and to North America and Europe in the 1960s and 1970s. War and instability fed a steady exodus of others from this period onward-punctuated by large outflows when political repression was particularly intense in the urban centres-giving these communities a more complex, multi-layered character.

Students, workers and women organized themselves into popular associations to support the liberation struggle. Community centres developed to give people a reference point for one another, as well as a venue for sharing news, acculturating children, organizing cultural and social events and mobilizing resources for the homeland.