Assisting return of highly skilled expatriates

Description

Assisting the return of highly skilled expatriates involves implementing targeted policies and support mechanisms to encourage professionals living abroad to return and reintegrate into their home countries. This strategy addresses brain drain by offering incentives, streamlining administrative processes, and providing career opportunities, thereby remedying skills shortages and fostering national development. Practical actions include recognition of foreign qualifications, financial benefits, and networking platforms to facilitate knowledge transfer and maximize the impact of returning talent on local economies.

Context

Many developing countries lack highly-skilled workers. To add to this short-coming, highly-skilled personnel from developing countries may emigrate to countries with better opportunities for them. Such migration is commonly known as the brain drain. One way to facilitate the need for high-level personnel in developing countries may be by encouraging the return of expatriates with desirable professional qualifications and practical experience.

Implementation

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is implementing programmes for the return of skilled personnel in Latin America and Africa, whilst some programmes may be developed for certain Asian countries. IOM: assists in identifying a post commensurate with the returnee's qualifications (for which local candidates are lacking); informs recruited potential returnees about employment and living conditions; preselects candidates based on their merit with regard to the proposed employment offer; prepares all the necessary paper work required for their return; organizes their return and reception; provides reintegration assistance. 1993 IOM activities in the field included among others, a Khmer Expert Programme to return skilled nationals back to Cambodia.