World Bank says migration triggers concerns as to "exodus of brains," including from Moldova
13:44 | 09.10.2019 Category: Economic
Chisinau, 9 October /MOLDPRES/ - Migration triggers concerns as to the “brain drain,” exodus qualified labour force from origin countries. Graduates of higher education institutions represent 55 per cent of all the population of emigrants from Bosnia & Herzegovina, over 40 per cent of the migrants from Armenia and Latvia and almost 40 percent of the populations of emigrants from Albania, Moldova, North Macedonia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Romania and Tajikistan, according to a recent World Bank’s economic forecast for Europe and Central Asia.
According to the report, Migration and Brain Drain, this permanent evolution represents rather “a symptom and not a reason of the basic problem.”
The World Bank’s report launched today shows that the number of emigrants from Moldova amounts to one million people, which accounts for 24 per cent of all the population, while the number of immigrants is under 100,000 people, or 3.3 per cent of all residents. The share of emigrants in the first five destination countries, including Russia, Italy, Portugal, is of 83.2 per cent of all Moldovans who left abroad.
The strengthening of the governance and consolidation of institutions in the origin countries are long-term policies which can approach the basic reasons of the permanent emigration. The policies regarding the preservation of the qualified labour force include the promotion of the private sector and stimulation of the creation of jobs, investments in the higher education and enhancement of opportunities for women in the economy.
The share of immigrants from European has quickly increased in the last four decades, with one of three immigrants from all over the world going to Europe. The intra-regional migration is also high in Europe and Central Asia, with 80 per cent of emigrants choosing to move to other countries of the region. Nevertheless, the opposition to migration is many times strong, as the benefits tend to be for long term, while the costs, including the moving and unemployment, are immediate and focused for certain groups.
The report shows the fact that the increase in the stimuli to remain in the origin country is more likely to discourage the external migration, as compared to the policies which limit the benefits from abroad.