'There are few studies on return migration in general and even fewer on migrants who have returned to their home countries in the Asian and Pacific region. Much is heard about "brain drain but much less about brain drain reversal. This book is to be welcomed as the first multi-country study to be published on the return of skilled and business migrants and the impact that they can have on their home economies in Asia and the Pacific. That impact is shown to be various and to change over time, the contributions clearly varying depending upon the nature of the environments to which the migrants have returned. The book presents valuable material from Bangladesh, China, Taiwan and Viet Nam, together with a contextual analysis of migrant communities from these economies in Australia.' - Ronald Skeldon, University of Sussex, UK Globalisation and social transformation theorists have paid significantly less attention to the movement of people than they have to the movement of capital. This book redresses the balance and provides timely insights into recent developments in return skilled migration in four regions in the Asia Pacific - Bangladesh, China, Taiwan and Vietnam. The authors believe that the movement of skilled migrants, and the tacit knowledge they bring with them, is a vital component in the process of globalisation.

Includes statistics.

Maritime migration : a wicked problem / Kathleen Newland -- Case study : unauthorized maritime migration in Europe and the Mediterranean region / Elizabeth Collett -- Case study : unauthorized maritime migration in the Bay of Bengal / Kathleen Newland -- Case study : unauthorized maritime migration in the Gulf of aden and the Red Sea / Kate Hooper -- Case study : the maritime approaches to Australia / Kathleen Newland -- Case study : maritime migration in the United States and the Caribbean / Kathleen Newland and Sarah Flamm

The East Asia and Pacific region has an international emigrant population of over 21 million people, who remitted more than USD 90 billion to their home countries in 2010. The region also hosts more than 7 million migrant workers, mostly from other Asian countries. These migrant workers account for 20 percent or more of the labor force in economies such as Malaysia and Singapore and thus play a significant role in the economies of the labor-receiving countries. The aging of the population in many East Asian countries will create significant labor shortages leading to greater demand for migrant workers. For these reasons, international labor mobility is emerging as an important development issue in East Asia with important implications for the Bank’s mission of poverty reduction and supporting sustainable economic development in the region. In this context , this study analyzes the impact of migration on development of the region and how international migration should be managed in East Asia in a way that supports development goals while simultaneously protecting the rights of migrants. The study covers: trends in international migration in East Asia and overarching regional issues such as the links between macroeconomic management and remittances and the role of demographic trends in migration; the economic impact of migration and remittances on labor-sending countries and labor-receiving countries; the migration industry; and the policies and institutions that govern migration.

This volume examines key aspects of the migration process that are particularly relevant in the Asian context. It looks into established concepts and theoretical propositions that have found application in other areas, particularly in the West and explores their validity and relevance in understanding the realities of migration in Asia. Global and Asian Perspectives on International Migration features the perspectives of scholars from Asia and other parts of the world, as well as diverse backgrounds. It presents a variety of forms, directions, policies and institutions, including circular and temporary migration; the management of cultural diversity; the gender perspective on migration in North America, Europe and Asia; returning migrants; migration governance in the ASEAN economic community; and the determinants of migration. In conclusion, the book explores migration transition in Asia and revisits select theories in light of recent evidence. With its dialogic approach to migration in Asia by renowned authors from various regions and disciplines, this book will serve as a valuable resource to policy makers in research and academia, civil society, international organizations and the private sector.

The research reports and statements by government representives contained in this volume were presented at the Policy Workshop on International Migration in Asia and the Pacific held at Bangkok from 15-21 October 1985. The workshop was the final activity of a 2-year Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) project on international migration policy in Asia and the Pacific, funded by the UN Fund for Population Activities. The 2nd phase of the project includes the studies reported in this volume, which were intended to be exploratory. They were meant to assess the current state of knowledge regarding return migration and to identify critical issues that would require further investigation. 5 of the studies are concerned with return migration from temporary employment, primarily in the Middle East. Because many of the labor-sending countries of the Mediterranean basin experienced a rapid expansion of labor emigration (largely to northern and western Europe) and a contraction of the flow and increase in return migration prior to current trends in Asian labor migration, it was felt that a background paper on that experience would be value to policy makers in the ESCAP region. Migration from the Pacific sub-region of ESCAP is both of more variable duration and less heavily labor-oriented than temporary migration from Asian countries to the Middle East. The workshop's objectives were 1. to bring together researchers and policy makers to review carefully the results of the 7 studies carried out as part of the project, 2. to relate the research findings to feasible government policies for the reintegration of returning labor migrants, and 3. to make and disseminate policy recommendations to governments in the ESCAP region.