Skilled Labour Migration and Positive Externality: The Case of Turkish Engineers Working Abroad

This study aims at exploring potential positive externalities of skilled labour migration from Turkey and highlighting social policies targeting “brain drain to brain gain” strategies in the case of Turkish engineers living abroad. Based on case study and further investigations, the skilled labour migration among Turkish engineers can be defined as a “brain over‐flow.” The main structural reason of this situation is discrepancy between educational and employment policies. Data indicate that it can be obtain positive externalities from skilled labour migration under certain conditions. Ninety per cent of all participants intended to give support to development practices in Turkey, even if they were not returning (n‐130). Only 10 per cent of all participants didn’t intend to give any kind of support. Cooperative projects, establishment of networks, forums and consultancy services to Turkish companies, were the most mentioned support manners. To realize these proposals, it is essential to develop active public policies aiming at a “brain drain to brain gain” approach, for short‐ and long‐term periods.