Conference of Rectors, Vice Chancellors and Presidents of African Universities Tripoli, Libya, Octob

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Conference of Rectors, Vice Chancellors and
Presidents of African Universities Tripoli,
Libya, October 21 25, 2007

• Optimizing the African Brain Drain Strategies
  for Mobilizing the Intellectual Diaspora towards
  Brain-Gain
• Presenter
• Yohannes Woldetensae, PhD
• Consultant Senior Expert in HE Quality Assurance

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Why Optimizing the African Brain Drain?

• Brain drain is one of the major contributors to
  the slow pace of development on the African
  continent
• The situation is likely to continue in the coming
  decades as part of globalization
• The magnitude of the brain drain problem and its
  alarming increase presents a growing urgency for
  action
• ?There is a clear need to urgently develop
• and implement strategies for addressing
  
• this issue

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Reasons of Brain Drain in Africa

• PUSH FACTORS ? Lack of jobs, low pay, limited
  career opportunities, low prospect of
  professional development, poor social conditions,
  and political instability
• PULL FACTORS ? Better job opportunities, higher
  pay, good working conditions, prospects for
  professional development, high living standards,
  and political stability

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Impacts of Brain Drain in Africa

• Each year emigrate 23,000 professionals ? leads
  to acute shortage of skilled HR
• The brain drain increases dependency on foreign
  technical assistance
• Africa spends over US4 billion per year to
  employ western experts
• Many universities in Africa have scarcity of
  high-qualified academic staff to undertake
  research and provide quality teaching

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Impacts of Brain Drain in Africa

• Approximately 65,000 African-born physicians and
  70,000 professional nurses were working overseas
  in the year 2000
• Thirty-eight of the 47 sub-Saharan African
  countries fall short of the minimum WHO standard
  20 physicians per 100,000 people
• Africas share of global scientific output has
  fallen from 0.5 in the mid-1980s to 0.3 in the
  mid-1990s
• ?Africa is losing its skilled human resources

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Positive Impacts of Brain Drain Remittances

• Remittances account for 5 to 20 of GDP (In some
  countries half of national income)
• Official remittances to Africa amounted to US12
  billion in 2003
• Actual figure is more since significant
  percentage of remittances are informal and
  difficult to quantify
• ?Although remittances has positive impacts, it
  does not substitute the adverse effects of brain
  drain

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - ONE

• Promoting Retention by Providing Incentives
• Provide incentives for high-qualified African
  personnel working in their country
• Incentive package may include salary top-ups,
  house rent allowance, transport facilities,
  medical insurance, and reduced taxes on certain
  imported items
• African universities need to promote their
  outreach activities for generating income to
  subsidize some expenses for staff incentive

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - TWO

• Facilitating Conditions for Returnees
• Create conditions to attract the intellectual
  Diasporas to come to their home countries
• Provide incentives reduced import taxes, foreign
  exchange accounts, placement in positions
  suitable to their expertise, and stronger
  private ownership laws
• ? Facilitating the conditions for returnees
• will improve the brain gain

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - THREE

• Strengthening Temporary Engagement of the
• Intellectual Diaspora
• African universities should establish strong
  external relations to attract Diasporas and
  arrange flexible schedule (weeks/ months)
• Provide furnished guesthouses, office facilities,
  local transport services, and modest allowance
  for seasonal engagement
• ?Short-term return assignments can be
• used to fill skills-gap in home country

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - FOUR

• Mobilizing the Diaspora through Virtual
• Participation
• Involve the Diaspora in activities such as module
  preparation for distance teaching e-learning,
  and sharing of information with local
  counterparts in research projects
• Engage the Diaspora through remote resource
  mobilization such as donation of books, sending
  computers or providing medical equipments

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - FIVE

• Establishing a Reliable Diaspora Database
• Set mechanisms in selected embassies to identify
  available resources on Diasporas
• Collaborate with relevant authorities of
  receiving countries to collect information
• Generate and frequently update national database
  on the Diaspora
• Develop African Diaspora master database under
  the auspices of African Union

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - SIX

• Improving Information Provision to Diaspora
• Exploit the potential of the Internet as an
  effective communication medium
• Publicize active Diaspora website with all
  pertinent and updated data
• Provide accurate, and timely information on local
  conditions and opportunities
• Relate local needs with resources available
  abroad to guide the African Diasporas

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - SEVEN

• Developing Intellectual Diaspora Networks
• Foster communication and information exchanges
  between the intellectual Diaspora their
  counterparts in their country of origin
• Promote professional linkages to manage
  coordinated actions in Diasporas
• Publicize the creation of new networks and
  existing initiatives in African Diasporas

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - EIGHT

• Improving Mechanisms for Remittances
• Take measures to simplify remittance transfers
• Creat cost-effective and accessible money
  transfer facilities with fast services
• Set rational currency exchange rate
• Develop policies and institutions that offer
  support to the optimal deployment of remittances
  in productive investments

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - NINE

• Formulating a National Diaspora Policy
• Develop clear national policy that is widely
  communicated and serve as basis for implementing
  Diaspora-related activities
• Involve all concerned stakeholders when drafting
  a national Diaspora policy
• A policy is essential to link development needs
  with Diaspora resources and to guide respective
  activities systematically

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - TEN

• Establishing Governmental Diaspora Office
• Set up offices mandated with the mission of
  working closely with Diasporas (some African
  countries have alrady)
• Formally integrate Diaspora affairs in the
  governmental structures
• Foster relationships with the Diaspora focusing
  to attract knowledge and material transfer for
  national capacity building

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - ELEVEN

• Increase African Governments Commitment
• They should demonstrate their commitment to
  retain skilled personnel at home and take
  initiatives to mobilize the Diaspora
• Put in place measures to create conducive
  environment for attracting and facilitating
  Diaspora contributions
• Improve communication linkages with their
  Diasporas through the use of embassies abroad

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Strategies for optimizing African brain drain
STRATGY - TEWELVE

• Promoting International Organizations Initiatives
  
• Initiate international organizations (UNDP,
  UNESCO, World Bank) and receiving countries to
  promote resource commitment
• African governments require assistance to
  effectively harness their Diaspora potential
• The issue of Africa's brain drain needs the
  efforts of the international community to
  effectively use the Diaspora ? Brain-gain

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Concluding Remarks

• The African Union and NEPAD need to play their
  coordinating and facilitating role to address the
  issue of brain drain
• Every African country needs to establish its
  Diaspora database that could be used to create
  African Diasporas master database
• All African countries need to evaluate
  periodically the Diaspora-related activities in
  order to assess their effectiveness and to
  fine-tune policies and strategies

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THANK YOU

• Any Questions?