How brain drain affects country?

Brain drain can be described as the process in which a country loses its most educated and talented workers to other countries through migration. This trend is considered a problem, because the most highly skilled and competent individuals leave the country, and contribute their expertise to the economy of other countries. The country they leave can suffer economic hardships because those who remain don't have the 'know-how' to make a difference.

Brain drain can also be defined as the loss of the academic and technological labor force through the moving of human capital to more favorable geographic, economic, or professional environments. More often than not, the movement occurs from developing countries to developed countries or areas.

Causes of Brain Drain

There are various causes of brain drain, but they differ depending on the country that's experiencing it. The main causes include seeking employment or higher paying jobs, political instability, and to seek a better quality of life. Causes of brain drain can be categorized into push factors and pull factors.

The push factors are negative characteristics of the home country that form the impetus for intelligent people migrating from Lesser Developed Countries (LDC). In addition to unemployment and political instability, some other push factors are the absence of research facilities, employment discrimination, economic underdevelopment, lack of freedom, and poor working conditions.

Pull factors are the positive characteristics of the developed country from which the migrant would like to benefit. Higher paying jobs and a better quality of life are examples of pull factors. Other pull factors include superior economic outlook, the prestige of foreign training, relatively stable political environment, a modernized educational system to allow for superior training, intellectual freedom, and rich cultures. These lists are not complete; there may be other factors, some of which can be specific to countries or even to individuals.