There is nothing wrong with brain circulation

Apr 04, 2009 Letters

Dear Editor,
I refer to Mr. Clinton Urling’s letter of March 27, 2009, in the Kaieteur News, with the caption “Is Guyana’s greatest wealth to be found overseas?”
Allow me to reiterate that yes, the greatest wealth of any country is its population and the successful application of available natural resources and monetary capital will depend on the quality of its human capital.
I acknowledge Mr. Urling’s point that “Guyana’s problem in relation to skilled and literate individuals who are capable of making positive contributions to its development has always been the inability to convince them to remain within the confines of its geographical boundaries.”

However, does this mean that a country should stop investing in its people?
Permit me to say, too, that Guyana is not the only country suffering from brain drain but also other developing countries, particularly in the Caribbean. But in those situations, there is something called brain gain that could be a supplement to the loss of skilled talent.
Some have chosen to return to their home countries to serve, while others choose to stay and pursue greener pastures elsewhere.

Every citizen has a choice: either they ‘cut and run’ or they return home to contribute to their country’s national development.
Developing countries have always been faced with the very serious problem of ‘brain drain’, and so this is why Government is making an effort to reform the educational system so as to encourage our young people to make better decisions.

A problem of brain drain can be turned into an asset of brain circulation. The only problem is that young people must receive a sound education, so as to gain knowledge, inculcate the forms of proper conduct, and acquire technical competency to groom them into mature individuals.
The long-term benefit of education would be to improve national development, develop the people and promote economic, political and cultural development, so as to improve the quality of life of the entire population.

So Mr. Urling’s logic that ‘Guyana’s greatest wealth resides overseas’ should not be interpreted to mean that efforts to develop the people should be grinded to a halt.
Government must continue to focus on the people, since a nation consumed with ignorance would not be the way forward.
There is nothing wrong with brain circulation; it is our decision that matters.
Marissa Lowden

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