73

"Most of the evidence from recent data indicates that economic development at origin diminishes eases pressures to emigrate, especially when tighter labor markets occur as a result of development; if there is any indication of a lower arm to of a migration hump, whereby development accelerates departures, it is apparently confined to very low-income countries. The effects of migration on economic development in countries of origin vary from one context to context another. Much depends on the nature and composition of migration, the economic environment in the sending countries, and the experiences of the migrants while away. The brain drain, particularly to the United States, is large, but the real costs it imposes on lower-income countries are not well understood. Some evidence of a brain gain is beginning to emerge, through the effect on trade. But the largest positive impacts almost certainly come from the circular migration of unskilled and semiskilled workers and their remittances, which play a critical role in alleviating poverty in many low-income countries."