In Search of the Diaspora Effect: Lessons from the Asian 'Brain Gain' for the Caribbean 'Brain Drain'

• Author: Jason Jackson
• Pages: 330-354

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FREEDOM AND CONSTRAINT IN CARIBBEAN MIGRATION AND DIASPORA

IntroductionIntroduction

IntroductionIntroduction

Introduction

The cross-border movement of persons has been one of the key

features of the current wave of globalization. However, the much-

lauded liberalization of factors of production associated with

globalization has been one-sided, with capital moving with increased

freedom between North and South and skilled (but critically less so,

unskilled) labour from developing countries being selectively welcomed

in the North. Much of the recent influx of highly skilled migrants has

been directed towards high technology poles in the advanced industrialised

countries, such as Silicon Valley and Route 128 in the United States.

However, an increasingly important trend currently being observed sees

skilled migrants from developing countries returning home after

participating in high technology sectors overseas. Many of these returning

migrants — scientists, engineers and technology managers — play

important roles in technology-intensive ventures back home, both as

employees recruited by existing firms as well as entrepreneurs, leading

traditional discussions of ‘brain drain’ to include reference to ‘brain gain’

and ‘brain circulation’. Most policymakers in developing countries, and

increasingly in OECD countries such as the UK, recognise the value of

their highly-skilled diasporas but few have enjoyed success in enticing

them home. Taiwan and India stand as exceptions to this rule.

In Search Of The Diaspora Effect:

Lessons From the Asian ‘Brain Gain’

For the Caribbean ‘Brain Drain’

JASON JACKSON

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IN SEARCH OF THE DIASPORA EFFECT

This chapter examines the ‘brain gain’ or ‘brain circulation’ dynamic

that has been observed between India and Taiwan and the United States.

It seeks to understand the role of the Taiwanese and Indian diasporas in

the development of their burgeoning domestic technology- and knowledge-

intensive sectors to identify lessons for technology and innovation policy

in the Caribbean given its large skilled Diaspora. For example, Jamaica has

one of the largest diasporas in the world — including both skilled and

unskilled persons — and so their potential contribution to domestic

development is great. However, this chapter argues that market forces cannot

be relied upon: there is a clear role for innovative policymaking to tap

overseas-based skills.

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The majority of economic literature on South-North migration tends

to focus on the effects on the advanced countries and the ensuing policy

responses, which usually entail restrictive immigration policies aimed at

stemming the influx of migrants (often at the behest of domestic interest

groups). However there has been increasing research interest in the effect

of migration on the sending countries, most of which are located in the

developing world. This reflects a growing recognition of the influence of

the cross-border movement of highly-skilled people in dynamic technology-

intensive development.

For more than three decades US immigration policy has made a

discernable shift towards skills-based selectivity, with policies favouring

the highly skilled while maintaining more stringent restrictions on entry

of unskilled migrants. This policy shift has been driven by two main factors:

(i) a growing gap between the domestic demand and supply of skilled

labour, which has been made urgent by increasing global competition and

(ii), more recently, concerns about the sustainability of the social security

system due to America’s ageing population.

Boosting the influx of highly skilled migrants has become an increasingly

important aspect of industrial policy in most advanced industrialized countries

(AICs). Intense global competition in high value-added goods and services