SciDev.Net

This paper summarises a research project that looked at the impacts of high skilled emigration on developing countries and the policy options of developed countries. The authors say that while there is little doubt that skilled emigration at the levels estimated will create challenges for certain developing countries the impact of increased international mobility of skilled workers may not necessarily be negative.

They emphasise that "brain exchanges" between countries characterise all advanced economies, forming one component of the flow of goods and information in a globalising economy. A central challenge is therefore for developing countries to engage appropriately in the exchange of skills taking place in the global labour market, and to maximise on the benefits of skilled migration.

The authors recommend that developed receiving countries should play an active role in addressing the issue, for example by encouraging temporary and return migration, controlling recruitment from at risk countries, incorporating mechanisms that encourage developing country economic growth, and assisting with diaspora arrangements. They conclude that the best means of addressing developing country skill shortages over the long run is to improve education, training and targetted economic deveopment.

This article notes that while highly-skilled migration is eliciting much debate, its effects — both positive and negative — have not been well studied or measured (particularly when compared with international migration in general). Simple models of "brain drain" and "brain gain" — which dominate most policy discussions — do not fully capture the complexity of the movement of people and knowledge across borders.

Data from the United States — as the world's largest educator of foreign students — is used to provide insights into the magnitude and direction of some of the possible effects of highly-skilled migration. The author warns that economic and knowledge creation should not be the only component of policy making on immigration policy, and that freedom of movement — as a human right — should also be considered.

In conclusion, both sending an receiving countries should be concerned with the potential effects of highly-skilled migration, and much research needs to be done to better understand its impacts. While the paper does not explicitly explore policy options, it describes how the magnitude of the effects of such migration will be significantly affected by aspects of a country's immigration, education and technology policies.

The author challenges the assumption that the emigration of highly skilled people is detrimental to their country of origin, and suggests that some developing countries — if not the majority of them — have in fact benefitted from this brain drain. He explains that the main reason for this is that migration prospects increase the expected return to education and, hence, foster domestic enrollment in education.

This concise article gives a brief overview of the current status of the brain drain, the feedback effects of this migration. It then asks whether there is an "optimal" brain drain, such that a country's stock of human capital can actually be increased. The author suggests that this could be achieved by designing specific incentives to return migration to those countries negatively affected by the brain drain, and to promote international cooperation aimed at furthering brain circulation.