Edita Miftari @odlivmozgova Youth emigration and brain drain Opportunity or necessity for youth in the Balkans Edita Miftari @odlivmozgova

Brain drain Brain drain noun informal - the emigration of highly trained or intelligent people from a particular country - emigration of highly skilled or well-educated individuals for better pay or conditions, causing their places of origin to lose those skills and expertise, i.e., the local "brains" Causes: - unemployment, quality of life, political instability, corruption Effects: - loss of tax revenue, loss of potential future entrepreneurs, shortage of skilled workers, loss of confidence in the economy (which will cause persons to desire to leave rather than stay), loss of innovative ideas, loss of the country's investment in education, loss of critical health and education services

Odliv mozgova Facebook group founded in 2012 in Bosnia and Herzegovina Response to the lack of academic and professional development opportunities One of the largest sources of information about youth opportunities in BiH and neighboring countries scholarships, internships, professional, academic and personal development, job opportunities 19 thousand members, 7 administrators, dozens of information on a daily basis Positive feedback

Opportunity or necessity - Both: Youth seeking employment, higher paying jobs, better quality of life - WEF GCI Country capacity to retain talent: Western Balkans countries have the highest rates of brain drain - Serbia is 1st, BiH is 5th, Croatia is 7th, FYR Macedonia is 12th; Albania and Montenegro are the most successful countries in the region in retaining talent - Low capacities to attract talent too Questions for discussion: - Opportunity or necessity? What are the reasons? What can be done?

Thank you! Questions?