Imagine you live in a developing country where the country has a lack of potential human resources. So, the question is, how could your country be developed? We know Bangladesh has a huge number of talented and intellectual young residents because of urbanization and development. But the real condition is not that good due to “Brain Drain”.
Brain Drain is a slang term showing the migration of trained and skilled individuals from a particular country to abroad. This issue affects our country because there are an increasing number of Bangladeshi students travelling abroad for higher studies. After completing their graduation from reputed universities, they are actually going to study in North America, Australia, Canada, Japan and the UK.
According to the US Embassy in Bangladesh, over 10,500 Bangladeshi students got US student visas in the 2021-2022 academic year which was over three times since 2009.
Besides the USA, students go to study in Australia, Japan, Canada & the UK because they offer alluring scholarships and other facilities. However, most migrated Bangladeshi students do not return home after completing their studies. As the host countries offer better job opportunities with high salaries, high-quality life, and residency permit or PR facilities.
However, there are lots of causes, & effects of Bangladesh’s Brain Drain and also some possible solutions.
Causes of Bangladesh’s Brain Drain
There are lots of reasons to migrate to other developed countries. The first reason is that students go for higher education because of the lack of world-standard universities. Besides, they do not get sufficient funding for research which stimulates them to pursue degrees from abroad.
“The chairman of UGC named Dil Afroza Begum said there are good jobs for the top talents in the country, and after getting jobs here, many of them are moving abroad because of the lack of job satisfaction.”
Also, some causes which encourage people to leave Bangladesh such as poor living standards like traffic jams, corruption, pollution, lack of security in life, better-earning opportunities, universities session jam, insecure jobs and so on. Also, If anyone wants to be an entrepreneur as an alternative, that would not be easy in Bangladesh.
According to the “World Bank Ease of Doing Business Index”, Bangladesh has ranked 140th out of 150 countries which reflects a horrible position.
Effects of Brain Drain on Bangladesh
When the brain drain is increasing in a developing country, like Bangladesh, there will be some negative impact on the economy.
- Lack of potential Human Resources
- Lack of future entrepreneurs
- Loss of tax revenues that decrease funding for social programs and infrastructures projects
- Loss of innovative ideas from talented and skilled human resources
- Loss of critical health and quality education services
Possible Solutions to Curb the Brain Drain
Though there are lots of reasons for brain drain which can not be solved overnight or even within 3 to 5 years. But the government should follow some developing countries in how they fight to reduce brain drain in practical steps. By following those practical steps, our country will decrease the flow of brain drain. Those practical steps are given below:
Support and Encourage Entrepreneurs
Supporting young entrepreneurs with better facilities, like sufficient funding than in other developed countries would help to reduce migration. For example, the city of Wenzhou in China is famous for young entrepreneurs. In this city, they decide to start shops where the amount granted from BDT 1.3 crores to almost 3 crores in taxes breaks and a healthy discount in leasing government office spaces.
Support highly talented and skilled individuals
If some individuals admit to world-famous universities like MIT, Stanford, or other institutions, our government may give some incentives to encourage them to come back homeland, such as outright monetary grants, discounted airfares, subsidised housing in government-owned properties, and subsided education for their children which will be beneficial for further development.
Maintain Work-Life Balance
In Bangladesh, both local and multinational companies do not maintain labour laws. They force them to do extra hours for their employees. But do not pay extra for extra hours. In this country, this is a dangerous culture in both local and multinational companies. As a result, this reason creates a poor work-life balance that stimulates switching jobs and seeking employment abroad where the government maintains a work-life balance.
So, if our government takes the necessary steps to protect labour laws, that will definitely encourage young talented and skilled people in Bangladesh.
Frankly Speaking, there are huge plans that can be taken. But it would not be beneficial if the government does not implement those actions properly. So, the government should implement those actions to decrease the overflow of the Brain Drain. Otherwise, we will lose our current talents. Those talented and skilled people will create the next giant multinational companies in the USA or other first world countries.
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Writer
Md. Sazid Alam
Intern, Content Writing Department
YSSE