Canada may aggravate Asian brain drain

Canada’s planned moves to attract hundreds of thousands of new immigrants is worrying several Asian nations as they rush to plug an ever-worsening brain drain.

From the Philippines to Taiwan and China to Malaysia, efforts are underway to stop their best and brightest from moving to West say news reports.

Last month, Canada's Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, John McCallum touted Canada as the go to place for Asians, especially Filipinos and Chinese nationals during a tour of Asia.

The Trudeau government is already seeking to admit between 280,000 and 305,000 new permanent residents in 2016 — a record increase from the 260,000 to 285,000 newcomers the previous Conservative government had planned to welcome by the end of 2015.

Canadian Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (CanCham) President Julian Payne said there would be no brain drain in the Philippines just because they are encouraging Filipinos to find employment or pursue an education in their country.

“We are helping the employment situation in the Philippines. They will work overseas and add to their skills and experience. Then, they will eventually go back,” Payne said.

Payne added that Filipinos returning to the Philippines at the prime of their careers would be assets when they work again in the country because of what they have learned, while those returning in their old age could serve as advisors based on their experience.

On the other hand, Payne said inviting Filipino students to further their education in Canada would provide benefits on both sides.

“Students are the lifeblood and future of a country. There are schools that need to be filled. It will be an enriching experience,” Payne added.

“Canada needs immigrants. We have a low birthrate and an expanding economy. We need to fill in jobs,” Payne said.

Payne said Filipinos are a logical choice to fill in jobs in Canada because of their work ethic and good moral background.

“Filipinos are good workers and they better themselves at work. They are also good citizens and they pay their taxes,” he said.

Payne also added that Filipinos are good fit for integration in Canada because they are fluent in English, practices Catholicism and are family oriented.

He said Filipinos who have migrated to Canada have found work as blue- and white-collared workers.

Filipinos, along with the Chinese and Indians, are the fastest-growing ethnic groups in Canada.

For decades, Asia's best students flocked to Western nations in pursuit of internationally-recognized degrees with many staying on to work afterwards. The issue, known as brain drain, hindered economic development in emerging Asia.

In a 2014 report, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said international study is often the first step towards eventual settlement in a foreign country. Asians accounted for over half of the international students in OECD nations between 2005 and 2011 with over 30 percent remaining in the country after completing their studies, data shows.

However, as more foreign universities open international branch campuses (IBCs) in Asia – the bulk of which are in China, Singapore and Malaysia – local students have an opportunity to attain a top-ranked education at home.

This shift in access to education could play a big role in reversing brain drain, experts say.

China, the world’s second-largest economy and one of the fastest-growing, sees a need to bring home more of its brightest as it works to transform its largely labor-intensive, low-tech economy into one fueled by innovation in science and technology.

Forbidden to study abroad until the 1980s, Chinese students have been attending foreign schools in growing numbers. More than 300,000 studied in the U.S. alone in the 2014-2015 school year.

Most of those students return to China, but the country has had difficulty regaining the most coveted graduates — those with advanced degrees and experience in science and engineering.

A 2014 report by Oak Ridge Institute shows 85 percent of the 4,121 Chinese students who received doctorates in science and engineering from American universities in 2006 were still in the U.S. five years later. Still, that marked an improvement for China: The stay rate had been 98 percent a decade earlier.

The 1,000 Talents program offers recruits salaries several times more than what a Chinese-educated local hire would receive, as well as heavily subsidized education for children and millions in startup research funds. The sign-up bonus alone can be as much as $150,000.