In The News

The Magic of Diasporas

November 23, 2011
Citizens in troubled economies like the US and Europe are increasingly lashing out against immigration. Such blame is misplaced. Fears about depressed wages, stretched benefit programs and brain drain are exaggerated, suggests this article in the Economist, and governments must do a better job of educating voters about “the growing economic importance of diasporas, and the contribution they can...

Foreign Workers Welcome, But No Permanent Residents, Please

Philip Bowring November 11, 2011
With rapid economic growth comes the need for new sources of labor, particularly for jobs that citizens no longer care to do. So, wealthy places like Hong Kong or Singapore turn to Bangladesh, the Philippines and other neighboring states for temporary migrant help, unskilled or low-skilled, in households, restaurants or construction sites. In particular, temporary immigration is on the rise, and...

Technology Boosts Bangladesh Migrant Job Search

Anbarasan Ethirajan November 9, 2011
The Bangladeshi government has turned to technology to assist its citizens in looking for jobs overseas. Any worker can now post his or her resume, national identification and passport details on a government website portal, which can then be viewed by foreign employers. This process reduces transaction costs related to attaining jobs overseas, particularly payoffs to corrupt middlemen, and rural...

World Will Miss Economic Benefit of 1.8 Billion Young People

Fiona Harvey October 31, 2011
As the population hits the 7 billion mark, the world contemplates the challenges in providing adequate education, jobs and other opportunities for growing numbers of youth. The largest cohort of youth in the world’s history can represent great potential or missed opportunities. A UN report warns that the potential economic benefits of having such a large global population of young people could go...

Colliding Forces

James Crabtree October 25, 2011
Widening inequality, easy proximity between poor nations and rich, exacerbate the many temptations of undocumented immigration. Angst is building in immigration hotspots – the Italian island of Lampedusa or along Mexican borders, both north and south – because citizens recognize that immigration pressures will only expand, explains James Crabtree for the Financial Times. He explains that citizens...

Chinese Scientist Admits Stealing Trade Secrets in US

October 20, 2011
A Chinese scientist, a permanent resident in the US who worked in the agro industry, has pled guilty to stealing trade secrets on pesticide and food products from two US employers, reports the BBC News. He was charged under the US 1996 Economic Espionage Act. The article suggests that greed or career ambitions can prompt such exchanges as much as patriotism. In the case of biotechnologist Kexue...

US Falls Behind in Global Race for Talent

Bruce Stokes October 17, 2011
The US has long attracted the world’s top talent coming to its shores for study and work and benefited richly from their innovations. Advanced engineering, math and science programs of US universities depend on students from China, India and South Korea: More than a third of the US doctoral-level science and engineering workforce was born outside the United States, reports Bruce Stokes,...