The Brain Drain in Egypt and its Impact on Economic Growth

This study aimed to assess the “brain drain” of Egypt and measure its impact on the country’s economic growth during the period 2000–2018, as well as explore specific policies that Egypt could adopt to reduce the phenomenon of brain drain. The results show there is an inverse relationship between the brain drain variable and gross domestic product (GDP), as an increase in talent migration by 1% leads to a 5.7% decrease in GDP, and this relationship is incredibly important. Capital accumulation positively affects GDP, as a 1% increase in the variable of capital accumulation leads to an increase of 3.2% in GDP, and human capital also positively affects the GDP, as a 1% increase in the human capital variable leads to an increase of 4.4% in GDP. These results are consistent with the economic theory that increased capital leads to an increased rate of economic growth. The study concludes that there are positive and negative effects associated with the brain drain in Egypt. The positive aspects are the increased remittances of workers abroad and the transfer of technology and investments through migrants who continue to have an association with Egypt, while the negative aspects are a decrease in human capital and decreased economic growth and productivity due to the migration of talents.