High Skilled Labor Force Brain Drain and Corruption: the Case of Colombia

The country of Colombia has experienced growth in high-skilled brain drain rates and is perceived to be a country with moderately high levels of corruption. This article contributes to the literature by analyzing the effects of high-skilled brain drain by applying a Random Utilization Maximization (RUM) model to explain emigration flows from Colombia using cross-sectional and regional multivariate regression models. Findings indicate that greater transparency of regional institutions reduces emigration flows of the high-skilled working population. The regional multivariate regressions also show that lower corruption of regional institutions mitigates high-skilled brain drain in landlocked regions, but fuels high-skilled brain drain from non-landlocked regions and those regions that share an international border. Policies designed to reduce high-skilled brain drain should be conducted at the regional level depending on the expected net effects that high-skilled brain drain has on the local political and economic institutions.