High-level emigration of educated people from the country will impoverish the economy and also negatively affect the sustainable and long-term growth of the country - says a study by INSTAT experts, Elma Çali and Sokrat Palushi, which does not represent the official position of the institution. 

Experts noted that Albania, by 2020, had the highest percentage in the region of emigration of educated people and students living abroad. 

According to the publication of INSTAT "Albanian Diaspora in Figures" the total population leaving Albania in 2020 was 1,684,135 individuals. INSTAT and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) also conducted a household migration survey. In this survey were collected data on the level of education and employment status, in the group of persons 15 years and older, where it resulted that over 350.000 people had left during the years 2011-2019. Survey data show that 47% of people with higher education have emigrated. 

Albania is also ranked first for the number of students attending education abroad, with respectively 18,181 students, followed by Serbia with 15,749 students, then Bosnia with 15,399. 

Experts claim that, on the one hand, the high number of Albanian students studying abroad can be seen as a positive phenomenon for the acquisition of knowledge in the respective fields where they study, but on the other hand, can be seen as a measurement indicator for lack of students' confidence in the quality of Albanian universities. 

Experts analyzed that brain drain brings an economic downturn further reducing the well-being of poorer nations. This phenomenon causes complex social problems that leave the country intellectually and technologically underdeveloped, as well as deepens the gap between developed and developing countries. 

Experts suggested that to mitigate the negative effect of this phenomenon, mainly in developing countries, the most important method is to undertake a series of policies that include important aspects of a country's development, such as economic, social, educational and environmental. 

First and foremost, we must recognize that persistent emigration is usually the symptom, not the cause, of an underlying problem. In the long run, governments need to address fundamental issues with policies aimed at improving governance, strengthening institutions, and improving public service delivery. 

According to them, increasing productivity in professions that require high qualifications, many of which are in the public sector, and making wages more competitive, would "entice" workers to stay. At the same time, private sector development and job creation need to be complemented by public sector reforms, without which qualified professionals will continue to emigrate. 

Expanding and improving higher and postgraduate education is another key policy to be undertaken, despite concerns that this approach could lead to even more emigration, leading to further losses. Several countries, including Romania and Croatia, have already pursued this policy to keep more students in their country who aspired to go abroad in search of higher quality education. 

There are also policies that can successfully encourage the return of their diaspora with highly professional skills, providing tax incentives for returnees. The return of migrants can support economic development, especially when they bring capital and knowledge, and when their countries give them the right conditions to fully implement their skills and experience, experts suggest.

(Source: Monitor)