essay on brain drain
The Brain Drain: Curse or Boon?
A Survey of the Literature1
Simon Commander
2
London Business School and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
Mari Kangasniemi
University of Sussex
and
L. Alan Winters
University of Sussex, CEPR and Centre for Economic Performance
This paper has been prepared for the CEPR/NBER/SNS International Seminar on International Trade,
Stockholm, 24-25 May, 2002. The research is supported by the UK Department for International
Development. We thank Jim de Melo for comments on an earlier version.
2 Contact details: Simon Commander, Centre for New and Emerging Markets, London Business School,
Regents Park, London NW1 4SA, scommander@london.edu; Mari Kangasniemi, Poverty Research Unit,
University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9SJ, mkangasniemi@london.edu; Alan Winters, Faculty of
Social Sciences, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN , mailto:l.a.winters@sussex.ac.uk.
1
1
1. Introduction
The term – brain drain – appears to have gained wide usage in the late
1960s when growth in the migration of skilled personnel from developing to developed countries accelerated 3. The developed countries - by attracting scarce skilled labour - were widely held to be pursuing policies that were costly to developing countries, both in the short and longer run. The costs were not only in terms of output and employment, but also - depending on the way in which education was financed – through additional fiscal costs associated with public subsidies to education. A variety of policy proposals – mostly centred around taxation – were floated, although none were ultimately implemented. Part of this may be attributed to likely difficulties with implementation, measurement problems
- including temporary migration and migration linked to education enrolment in developed countries - as well as ambiguities with respect to the welfare consequences. Many of the same issues – and debate – have undergone a recent
A Survey of the Literature1
Simon Commander
2
London Business School and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
Mari Kangasniemi
University of Sussex
and
L. Alan Winters
University of Sussex, CEPR and Centre for Economic Performance
This paper has been prepared for the CEPR/NBER/SNS International Seminar on International Trade,
Stockholm, 24-25 May, 2002. The research is supported by the UK Department for International
Development. We thank Jim de Melo for comments on an earlier version.
2 Contact details: Simon Commander, Centre for New and Emerging Markets, London Business School,
Regents Park, London NW1 4SA, scommander@london.edu; Mari Kangasniemi, Poverty Research Unit,
University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9SJ, mkangasniemi@london.edu; Alan Winters, Faculty of
Social Sciences, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN , mailto:l.a.winters@sussex.ac.uk.
1
1
1. Introduction
The term – brain drain – appears to have gained wide usage in the late
1960s when growth in the migration of skilled personnel from developing to developed countries accelerated 3. The developed countries - by attracting scarce skilled labour - were widely held to be pursuing policies that were costly to developing countries, both in the short and longer run. The costs were not only in terms of output and employment, but also - depending on the way in which education was financed – through additional fiscal costs associated with public subsidies to education. A variety of policy proposals – mostly centred around taxation – were floated, although none were ultimately implemented. Part of this may be attributed to likely difficulties with implementation, measurement problems
- including temporary migration and migration linked to education enrolment in developed countries - as well as ambiguities with respect to the welfare consequences. Many of the same issues – and debate – have undergone a recent