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Migration can support development
Organised irresponsibility
Appropriate approaches to fighting climate change
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6/2004 |
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[ ILO / GTZ meeting of experts in Berlin ]
Migration can support development
Labour migration has both a negative and a positive influence on the economic situation in the migrants’ countries of origin. A so-called “brain gain” can compensate for the effects of the long-lamented “brain drain”, as the migration of highly-skilled labour from the developing countries has often been labelled. However, migrants in rich countries can also contribute to economic development in their home country by providing a return flow of technical knowledge and money, by establishing trading contacts or initiating investment.
Up until now, the enormous development potential of the Diaspora – the biblical term has long since mutated into the ethno-sociological term – has hardly been recognised. Rough estimates place migrant remittances to their home countries at between US$ 72 and 120 billion world-wide. Virtually untouched by the economic crises of the past decades, remittances have steadily increased. By the mid-1990s, they exceeded official development assistance and became the second-largest source of foreign exchange in the developing countries. Such trends were discussed at a conference held in Berlin at the beginning of May by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and German Technical Cooperation (GTZ).
Most of the money, unless sent to political organisations, ends up in the pockets of family members. They tend to spend it on consumer goods and thus stimulate the economy. Surveys in Mexico, however, show that the poorest segments hardly receive any money. Moreover, remittances only contribute a very small percentage to the funding of large investment projects such as education and health, road and bridge-building, sewage systems, power and water supply. They rather tend to be used to start small and medium-sized family businesses, which do not always make the best economic sense. In Kosovo, for instance, migrant cash was used to build gas stations, a large number of which now stand empty. On the other hand, software businesses in India have shown that medium-sized organisations can also be successful.
A serious problem is the general lack of reliable, independent consultants, co-ordination agencies and funds to promote viable new companies with future prospects, and thus help create jobs. This is true in the countries of origin as well as the host countries. Legislative measures to regulate immigration at all levels and safeguard commuter migration, which is of increasing economic interest, are long overdue – particularly so in Germany. Furthermore commercial banks, which have been charging handsome fees for foreign transfers, should grant migrants more realistic business conditions. Up to now, foreign currency has been conveyed mainly by private couriers and the somewhat suspect hawala system.
In the meantime, one should not overlook the significant problems which continue as a result of the classic “brain drain”. According to an OECD study, the loss of approximately 9000 doctors because of emigration has cost South Africa about US$ 1 billion which was invested in their training. Data sources indicate that Ethiopia and Zambia have seen half of their medical professionals migrate to other countries. This is a disastrous loss, particularly when viewed against the background of the Aids pandemic.
Johannes Wendt
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