High skilled emigration and human capital: A theoretical and empirical essay for the case of Middle-Income Countries

Kouni, Mohamed (2016): High skilled emigration and human capital: A theoretical and empirical essay for the case of Middle-Income Countries. Published in: International Journal of Economics and Research , Vol. 7, No. 6 (2016): 87 -107.

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to investigate the effect of high-skilled emigration on human capital investment in some middle-. Hence, we extend the Solow model by taking into account the net effect of high-skilled emigration. The theoretical result showed that if the ratio of the emigrant human capital on the resident human capital is inferior to critical level, and in the case of strong selectivity adopted, the high skilled emigration can generate an important quantitative brain gain as well as the possibility of qualitative brain gain. At the empirical level, new approximations are proposed. Then, based on these approximations a beta convergence model is re-estimated. The results showed that the emigration prospects have a positive and highly significant effect. The elasticity of the human capital investment with respect to emigration prospects varies from about 1.7% to about 2%.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Brain drain, human capital, development, instrumental variables-GMM method
• Subjects: F - International Economics > F2 - International Factor Movements and International Business > F22 - International Migration; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J2 - Demand and Supply of Labor > J24 - Human Capital ; Skills ; Occupational Choice ; Labor Productivity; O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development > O15 - Human Resources ; Human Development ; Income Distribution ; Migration

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