UN Report recommends restricting Brain Drain from LDCs

It says emigration of skilled workers in most developing countries continues to be a serious barrier to sustainable economic growth of 50 world's poorest nations. The study recommends that LDCs personnel should be hired on temporary rather than permanent basis to enable intellectuals return to contribute to the development of their own countries.

"There should be programmes in place to help skilled emigrants return to their homes country" notes the report.

Overall it is estimated that some 1 million skilled persons from LDCs lived and worked in developed countries in the year 2004, accounting for a brain drain of 15% of the 6.6 million people in LDC who have university level education. Five LDCs -- Haiti, Cape Verde, Samoa, Gambia and Somalia -- have lost more than half their university-educated professionals in recent years because these professionals have moved to industrialized countries in search of better working and living conditions, notes the report. Seven others have seen more than one third of their trained professionals leave. By contrast, brain drain is less acute in Asian LDCs. Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan have lost less than 5% of their skilled persons to developed countries.

Lost "human capital", as it is called, can have serious consequences. The work of skilled professionals is a precondition for upgrading the productive structures and the exports of LDCs, and for improving the sophistication of domestic businesses -- not to mention for improving domestic health and education, which benefit entire populations. Without enough trained agronomists, biologists, engineers, scientists, doctors, nurses and information and communication technology (ICT) professionals, it is impossible for the firms and farms of LDCs to use technology to upgrade their products and efficiency -- and that makes it difficult for them to face foreign competitors. The emigration of qualified people thus damages long-term growth and development prospects. This is particularly true for LDCs, given their relatively low populations of skilled professionals.

On the World Trade Organisation (WTO) treaties, the report recommends that transitional period for the LDCs should not be subjected to an arbitrary and predetermined deadlines instead they should be allowed to last until an LDC has reached what the TRIPS preamble calls, 'a sound and viable technological base'. The report further recommends that rules on Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) should be selectively adapted to give a break to the worlds poorest countries which otherwise may not be able to achieve the technological development that can spur economic growth.

The report adds that it is unrealistic on current trends to expect most such countries will achieve a sound and viable technological base by 2013 the deadline set for their compliance with international standards as required by the agreement on Trade Related aspects of Intellectual Property Rights of the world trade organisation (WTO).

The LDCs report 2007 titled 'Knowledge, technological learning and innovation for development" says current strong IPR regimes favour the holders of intellectual property who tend to be in industrialised countries. The report points out that a growing number of free trade agreements, bilateral investment treaties and other international trade pacts such as AGOA and the draft trade agreements between the industrialized countries and the LDCs override these special conditions.

For full report <click here>

Resource: www.unctad.org, www.allafrica.org

Released on: 7 August 2007