Summary

Skilled migration has been increasing from South Africa since the end of apartheid, is likely to continue doing so, and is not being matched with an equal number of skilled immigrants. This is a contentious and important policy topic, and the subject of public debate in South Africa and beyond. This work represents some of the most comprehensive research undertaken on skilled migration - the so called brain-drain - from South Africa, Botswana and Lesotho; and on the skilled South African diaspora, supporting assumptions and findings with concrete data to produce an accurate picture of the realities of skilled migration. The study sets the phenomenon into regional context, and against the background of unskilled migrations in the region. It surveys the views of skilled South Africans, Botswanans and Basotho and the views of South African employers on the brain-drain, and the situation of women. It further considers implications for national immigration policy and policies designed to redress present imbalances given South Africa's imperative to develop.