Personal
The decision to leave one’s country is a personal one, and as is often the case, the reasons are linked to ambition, economics, and safety and security. Using his or her own calculus, the émigré determines the costs and benefits of taking the risk of leaving a familiar environment in Guyana and seeking economic opportunities in a strange environment. That Guyanese leave in high numbers, and sometimes at personal risk, means that, for them, the perceived benefits are worth the risks. According to Kinuthia and Akinyoade in an article entitled “Diaspora and development in Kenya: What do we know?” that appears in the April-May, 2012 edition of the Migration Policy Practice Journal, migrant movement is regarded as an integral part of an individual’s freedom to make choices. This kinder view of migration, which is associated with UNDP, enables it to lose its negative image as a destructive instrument of development. The rights-based approach to migration also leaves Guyana with few good options to stem the undesired outflow of its human capital. Restricting migration to hold on to its talent could easily be viewed maliciously as an attempt by Guyana to restrict the freedom of its people.
Increasingly Difficult
With little room to maneuver, it is likely to become increasingly difficult for Guyana to rely on its own intellectual capital to resolve its economic and social problems as a result of the global demand and search by increasing numbers of countries for intellectual capital. The competition for intellectual capital is intense with many economic leaders in Europe, and parts of Asia facing an aging population and dwindling industry-ready workforce. Without the
