Concluding Reflections: Assessing the Migration of Highly Skilled Professionals from Türkiye

This concluding chapter offers a comprehensive synthesis and critical evaluation of the analyses presented throughout this volume on the migration of highly skilled professionals from Türkiye, situated within the broader structural dynamics that govern the position of less developed countries (LDCs) in the global economy. The chapter integrates empirical findings and conceptual insights from preceding chapters to elucidate the multifaceted implications of this phenomenon for Türkiye’s long-term economic development. Framing highly skilled migration as a form of “new-age imperialism,” the discussion highlights how the systematic outflow of skilled professionals from LDCs like Türkiye disproportionately benefits developed countries (DCs), deepening global inequalities in knowledge, innovation, and economic performance. The loss of engineers, medical professionals, and AI/IT specialists undermines Türkiye’s endogenous innovation capacity, industrial competitiveness, and ability to attract investment while exacerbating labor shortages and economic vulnerabilities across key sectors. It warns that without dismantling the entrenched colonialist mentality underlying these flows, the persistent drain of critical human capital will continue to hinder Türkiye’s and other LDCs’ sustainable development while generating escalating social and economic challenges in receiving DCs.