The brain drain from Africa to western countries in search of qualified job opportunities and high-level training is depleting the continent of its best talents. Despite being one of the lesser-known African problems, the brain drain contributes to the vicious spiral of underdevelopment and poverty. For this, it is no less serious than other dilemmas that plague Africa.
The extent of the phenomenon is set out in the Global Competitiveness Report 2014-2015 of the World Economic Forum (WEF). Important to note, that the experts of the International Foundation indicate that the African country with the highest rate of brain drain is Burundi, plunged into a political and economic crisis, triggered ten months ago by the re-election of President Pierre Nkurunziza, who has already resulted in about 500 victims.
It is clear that the African nation is paying the price of a tiny intellectual class capable of making capable its voices heard during crises and conflict.
The problem, however, is not only in Burundi but also involves Algeria, Mauritania, Chad and Guinea, appearing in the last places on the list compiled by the WEF, which highlights the almost total lack of meritocracy of these countries in assigning a job.
A key challenge for tertiary institutions
Last week, at the ceremony of inauguration of the new academic year of the International University of Management (IUM) in Windhoek, David Namwandi, founder of the university and former Minister of Education of Namibia, described the brain drain as one of key challenges for tertiary institutions in Africa, explaining that this phenomenon continues to affect the entire continent.
Namwandi added, that “one third of all African scientists live and work in developed countries”. “This figure represents a significant loss of economic potential for the continent and for this he called on African governments to take drastic measures to reverse this negative trend”.
To stop the brain drain, Namwandi proposed more investment in universities and research centers and the provision of financial support for young researchers.
Studies on the African brain drain
A study carried out by Ottawa University and published in the British Medical Journal, has estimated that sub-Saharan countries that invest in training health workers have ended up losing about two billion dollars as the expert clinicians leave home to find work in more prosperous developed nations.
The study found that South Africa and Zimbabwe are two countries that have suffered the worst economic losses due to doctors emigrating, while Australia, Canada, Britain and the United States have benefited the most.
In addition, the transfer of skilled professionals from poorer countries to richer ones has exacerbated the problem of the weakness of health systems in low-income countries, where combating epidemics of infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.
A joint report by the Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations and the Organization for Cooperation and Economic Development (OECD) found that one in every nine Africans with tertiary education live and work in developed countries.
The number of African migrants has grown by more than 50% over the past decade, more than any other region of the world, while in the last two decades the number of African professionals’ immigrants in Western countries has tripled.
According to recent data provided by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), one third of the continent’s intellectuals now living abroad, and at least 20 thousand highly qualified university every year leave Africa.
The deficit of qualified human resources
The price of this exodus is paid in terms of poor management structures, but the most important aspect of the problem is the qualified human resources deficit. This shortcoming forcing African countries to fill the gaps caused by the lack of local skilled personnel, using Western technicians, with an increase of the balance of payments and the external debt burden.
A World Bank report, dated May 2006, commenting on the consequences in economic terms: “The brain drain is a double blow to the economies of the poorest countries that not only lose their best human resources and the money invested in their training. Nevertheless, they also have to pay about 5.6 billion dollars a year to fill the labor void left by expatriates”.
Unfortunately, after ten years, the exodus is still in progress and poor countries continue to pay high wages for North Americans and Europeans specialists that replace the emigrants.
@afrofocus
The brain drain from Africa to western countries in search of qualified job opportunities and high-level training is depleting the continent of its best talents. Despite being one of the lesser-known African problems, the brain drain contributes to the vicious spiral of underdevelopment and poverty. For this, it is no less serious than other dilemmas that plague Africa.
