For various reasons, we are living in an age of migration, with recent estimates showing that some 258 million people (or 3.4%) are living outside of the country of their birth.  This has risen considerably from the 2% of the world’s population who did so in 1970.

The patterns of migration are also changing, as back then it would be common for the migrant to make a one-way journey and settle in their new home.  Now, movement is more fluid, with more migrants returning to their homeland.  Indeed, between 1990 and 2015, data suggests that around half of migrants returned to the country of their birth.

It perhaps goes without saying that migrants tend to return home very different people to when they left.  They often have more money, are multilingual and have higher education levels than those who remained in their local community.  They also often have greater work experience and larger social networks.

New research highlights how this offers a ‘brain gain’ to the local community, and even the wider country.  Things can go even further however, as time spent abroad can expose migrants to new political norms, and data has shown how exposure to Europe and North America has encouraged migrants from Mali to return with democratic ideals that have helped to contribute to higher electoral turnout and greater government accountability.

Of course, this influence is not always positive, with the paper highlighting the example of Filipino migrants returning from work in the Middle East with a lesser opinion on democracy than when they left.  The paper focuses specifically on the impact of return migration on Mexico however, which with data suggesting more Mexicans are leaving the United States than entering it, is a very real phenomenon.

Returning migrants

Previous research has suggested that Mexican households with at least one returned migrant tend to have higher income and a range of better life outcomes than their peers.  The new study utilized data analysis and in-person interviews to explore the impact returning migrants were having across Mexico.

The analysis found that returning migrants improved the living conditions for the rest of their communities as well as their immediate family, with the new skills, such as fluent English, learned abroad helping local economic development, with new jobs and wealth created.  They even expected much more of local government officials, which helped to raise the standard of government.

The benefits continued, with the presence of return migrants appearing to reduce the likelihood of violent crimes, as they bring social and human capital with them that helps reduce crime in the local neighborhood.

These benefits are perhaps not something that get spoken about a great deal, but the commonality of experiences around the world suggest it is widespread, and provides yet another example of how migration can benefit the global community.