## Emigration and Brain Drain: Evidence From the Caribbean

_IMF Working Papers, January 1, 2006_

## Source details

**Canonical URL:** [Emigration and Brain Drain: Evidence From the Caribbean](https://www.imf.org/en/publications/wp/issues/2016/12/31/emigration-and-brain-drain-evidence-from-the-caribbean-18662)

## Other formats

- [Markdown version](/en/publications/wp/issues/2016/12/31/emigration-and-brain-drain-evidence-from-the-caribbean-18662/index.md)
- [Structured JSON version](/en/publications/wp/issues/2016/12/31/emigration-and-brain-drain-evidence-from-the-caribbean-18662/index.json)
- [Bundle manifest](/en/publications/wp/issues/2016/12/31/emigration-and-brain-drain-evidence-from-the-caribbean-18662/bundle-manifest.json)

## Bibliographic details
- Authors: Prachi Mishra
- Published: January 1, 2006
- Series: IMF Working Papers
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9781451862850.001

---

### Summary findings
- The paper quantifies the magnitude and nature of migration flows from the Caribbean and estimates their costs and benefits.
- The results suggest that there is indeed some evidence for brain drain from the Caribbean.
- Simple welfare calculations suggest that the losses due to high-skill migration (ceteris paribus) outweigh the official remittances to the Caribbean region.

### Migration scale and composition
- Caribbean countries have lost 10-40 percent of their labor force due to emigration to OECD member countries.
- Migration rates are particularly striking for the high-skilled: many countries have lost more than 70 percent of their labor force with more than 12 years of completed schooling—among the highest emigration rates in the world.

### Remittances and macroeconomic context
- The region is the world's largest recipient of remittances as a percent of GDP.
- Remittances constituted about 13 percent of the region's GDP in 2002.

### Research output and metadata
- Author: Prachi Mishra
- Publication date: January 1, 2006
- Series: Working Paper No. 2006/025
- Issue: 025
- Volume: 2006
- Pages: 39
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9781451862850.001
- Stock No: WPIEA2006025
- ISBN: 9781451862850
- ISSN: 1018-5941
- Subjects: Education, Labor force, Migration, Remittances, Skilled labor
- Keywords: emigration, emigration loss, WP

*IMF Working Paper: "Emigration and Brain Drain: Evidence From the Caribbean" by Prachi Mishra (Working Paper No. 2006/025).*

---

## Content in this bundle

- **Wp0625**
  - [Wp0625 (Markdown version)](/-/media/websites/imf/imported-full-text-pdf/external/pubs/ft/wp/2006/_wp0625.pdf.md){rel="alternate" type="text/markdown"}
  - [Wp0625 (PDF)](/-/media/websites/imf/imported-full-text-pdf/external/pubs/ft/wp/2006/_wp0625.pdf){rel="external" type="application/pdf"}

---

_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/publications/wp/issues/2016/12/31/emigration-and-brain-drain-evidence-from-the-caribbean-18662_