Higher education investment needed to halt ‘brain drain’

The National 10 June 2022

A shortage of top universities in the Middle East and North Africa, coupled with concerns about future employment prospects, is causing a “brain drain” of talent out of the region, a report has warned, writes Daniel Bardsley for The National.

A study by the Majid Al Futtaim business group and McKinsey found that 8% of the world’s university students come from the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan – but only 1.5% of the best universities are found there. The relative scarcity of top facilities to meet the needs of the region’s brightest has led to many “leaving to study abroad, and in many cases, not returning home”, according to the report.

Dr Frederic Schneider, an economist and lecturer at the University of Birmingham Dubai who researches issues related to education and population in the region, said some countries were moving to bolster their education systems to retain the workers of the future.
Full report on The National site

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