NOVAFRICA Update: New Publication in Science Magazine
“Brain Drain or Brain Gain? Effects of High-Skilled International Emigration on Origin Countries”
The study combines a theoretical framework with a review of recent empirical research showing that:
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High-skilled emigration can boost home economies by spurring education, health, innovation and businesses, international trade and investment, social and political norms, as well as financial remittances.
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Migration motivates skill-building and can result in a net increase in human capital: The prospect of earning higher salaries abroad drives people to invest more in education—even if most of them end up never leaving.
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Cross-border ties matter: Migrants abroad often maintain global professional networks, which foster trade, investment, and transfer of social and political norms to their networks in the origin country.
➡️ Bottom line: With the right policies, countries can turn brain drain into brain gain!
Why does this matter?
Restricting immigration of high-skilled individuals can harm both destination and origin economies.
Read the full article here
The article was authored by NOVAFRICA Scientific Director and Nova School of Business and Economics Professor Catia Batista, together with co-authors Daniel Han (Boston University), Johannes Haushofer (Cornell University), Gaurav Khanna (UC San Diego) David McKenzie (The World Bank), Ahmed Mushfiq Mobarak (Yale University), Caroline Theoharides (Amherst College) and Dean Yang (University of Michigan).
