Egypt – A joint IOM / League of Arab States report: “Promoting Positive Contributions to Socioeconomic Development and Political Transitions in the Homelands” was published this week.

The report is a collection of research papers focusing on specific aspects of the complex socio-economic and political relationships that exist between expatriate communities and their home countries in the Middle East and North Africa.

In the Middle East and North Africa, national stocks of expatriates (excluding the West Bank and Gaza) can be as high as 15 per cent of the native population. The remittances that these expatriates send home can account for as much as 22 per cent of GDP.

Expatriates contribute knowledge and expertise to the development of human capital and the use of new technologies in the region. Migration has also served as a mechanism for the transfer of ideas, knowledge and culture.

The kinds of relationships that these expatriates have with their home countries and the pace of development in the region have therefore become increasingly interlinked.  

The research comes at a time when the Arab uprisings of 2011 have created new opportunities for recasting and reinforcing these relationships.

Arab expatriates may therefore not only become increasingly engaged in the development of their countries of origin, but may also contribute to the political transitions that are underway.

The analyses and recommendations put forward in the report will serve as a foundation for future work aiming to realize the developmental potential of expatriate communities.

Such communities, mobilized by the unique bonds they have with their home countries and their desire to see those countries enjoy socio-economic growth, may be one of the most important driving forces in development in the 21st century.

To read the full report in English or Arabic, please visit: http://www.egypt.iom.int/publications.htm

For more information, please contact  

Harry Cook
IOM Egypt
Tel: 20 (0) 27365140 (Ext. 398)
Email: hcook@iom.int