The Brain-Drain Panic Returns

Jan 27, 2012 Jagdish Bhagwati

While developed countries are angst-ridden over mostly illegal immigration by unskilled workers from developing countries, a different set of concerns has surfaced in Africa, in particular, over the legal outflow of skilled people to developed countries. But these concerns are misplaced.

NEW YORK – While developed countries are angst-ridden over mostly illegal immigration by unskilled workers from developing countries, a different set of concerns has surfaced in Africa, in particular, over the legal outflow of skilled, and even more importantly, highly skilled, people to developed countries. This outflow is supposedly a new and damaging “brain drain,” with rich countries actively luring away needed skills from poor countries.

This fear is misplaced. At the outset, we have to distinguish between “need” and “demand.” Yes, many African countries need skills. But they are unable to absorb them, owing to several factors associated with economic backwardness.

In India in the 1950’s and 1960’s – a time when many professionals were emigrating – working conditions were deplorable. Bureaucrats decided whether we could go abroad for conferences. Heads of departments carried inordinate power. So, no surprise, many of us left. We Hindus may believe in an infinity of lifetimes, but we maximize our welfare in this one, just like everyone else.

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Jagdish Bhagwati

Writing for PS since 2010
28 Commentaries

Jagdish Bhagwati is University Professor of Law and Economics at Columbia University and Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. A renowned expert on international trade, he has served in top-level advisory positions for the World Trade Organization and the United Nations, including Economic Policy Adviser to the Director-General, GATT (1991-93), and Special Adviser to the UN on globalization. He is the author of many books, including In Defense of Globalization.

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Roman Bleifer Mar 22, 2012

The processes of labor migration is a consequence of globalization. As the global financial crisis and the formation of elements of the new production system and the international division of labor ( http://crisismir.com/analiticheskie-materialy/ekonomika/13-mirovoj-ekonomicheskij-krizis-prichiny-i-posledstviya-quo-vadis.html ), and migration processes will only increase. Is that a fair process for those mipratsii or other countries, it is a matter of morality rather than economics.
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Kristy Mayer Feb 16, 2012

Your proposals seem to omit a potentially significant institutional mechanism to mitigate the outflow of highly skilled workers. As you note, working conditions in developing countries can be “deplorable” (or, at least, frustrating for skilled workers). This is true for the reasons you cite, but also because many developing countries lack the institutional capacity to effectively leverage their skilled workers, significantly impeding skilled workers’ ability to have a positive impact in their home countries. For a skilled individual, the choice between working in a dysfunctional domestic institution and working on the same issues at a relatively effective international institution is likely often simple. Thus, for a country to retain its skilled workers, it must start by reforming its institutions – by combating corruption, improving institutions’ ability to implement reforms, increasing transparency – so that workers’ skills can have an impact closer to their full potential.
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Kristy Mayer Feb 16, 2012

You suggest meeting the current demand for highly skilled workers through a “Grey Peace Corps” of skilled senior citizens from developed countries. While these individuals would certainly be able to meet some of a country’s skills demand, they lack the deep cultural understanding and inherent motivation of native workers. The Grey Peace Corps could be a useful near-term stop-gap measure in situations of dire need, but otherwise, countries would be better served by devoting resources to improving institutional capacity and otherwise enticing skilled workers to remain at home.
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