The Gulf states take in a lot of migrant workers, who have basically no labour rights there.
replyhttps://www.ilo.org/regions-and-countries/arab-states/united...
"The UAE hosts some 8.7 million migrant workers – equivalent to over 80 per cent of the country’s resident population – making it one of the largest foreign labour-receiving countries in the world. With Emirati nationals mainly employed in the public sector, migrant workers constitute the bulk of private sector employment"
I think people underestimate how many people move back to their home country once they have a better chance (through e.g. education or money) and / or when the situation there improves (e.g. stability). It's why I don't understand why the anti-immigration parties don't do more internationally to help other countries.
replyThe reason why pouring money into countries that source immigrants is a questionable solution is graft.
replyYes, pouring money may not be a very efficient solution and graft can certainly happen. For me it's a combination of how much graft do we allow if we take the long perspective and see it shrinking over time (maybe we dont allow any, cold turkey)? And what are ways we can help change the environments that may not be directly tied to money? From my perspective, we often need (and graft) money the most when we don't trust ourselves and others to help us. So are there ways we can help build deeper relationships so money is not the only focus or way people think they can get help?
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replyOr move back to your home country once you've gained a beneficial citizenship and can have foreign government benefits paid out every month while you don't even live in that country anymore.
replyWhat country pays out benefits to non-residents?
replyAnd if you pay taxes and social security for 20+ years why wouldn’t you be entitled to it? Especially considering you wouldn’t be using expensive programs like Medicare.
replyYou don't have to pay taxes nor social security for 20+ years in order to become a citizen in very many countries. You can live on benefits before becoming a citizen and after becoming a citizen. Usually the requirement is that you are a resident for a set number of years in order to become a citizen.
replyPerhaps. I think it's more about the passport ranking so one can travel and also the salary bump. But even if more of the other government services, try living in a country where if you get into a serious car accident you have to pay cash at the ER before they treat you. Scrambling to find multiple thousands of dollars in cash at 3am sometimes. (This happened to my friend in Kenya)
replyIm not sure if I can blame people for wanting to have more financial or medical security.
I think a very low percentage of migrants do it so that they can get a better passport for traveling. Sure, there are people who do that also.
replyBecause we, correctly, assume that some countries are simply beyond saving. Throwing good money after bad.
replyWhy "correctly"? Who says that a country or a group of humans or even an individual human is beyond saving?
reply> Who says that a country or a group of humans or even an individual human is beyond saving?
replyThe one doing the saving.
Surely the one needing help should not be the to decide. They will always say “I’m worth saving”.
Less cynically, perhaps we correctly realize that some countries are beyond our saving by us throwing money at them.
replySaudi Arabia has one of the highest immigration populations on Earth, somewhere around 42% contrasted against 15.8% in the US (which is an all-time high). They offer huge wages for pretty much everything, have dirt cheap living costs, and like many Mideast countries - there's no taxes for individuals.
replyThese are expats, not immigrants. They aren't welcome to become citizens in Saudi Arabia.
replyI'm not entirely clear that the migration dataset actually distinguishes between those cases?
replyMy comment was based on Saudi Arabia's expat policy. Not on the dataset. Saudi Arabia doesn't welcome foreigners moving there to become citizens.
replyIsn't migration to MENA - specifically migration to North Africa mainly from Sub-Saharan part of Africa?
reply> Fascinating to see that MENA is a net positive on migration.
replyReally? it's a big economical hub now, the bulk of it migrate to a few countries, and in these countries just a few cities. It's a very different type of migration too.
https://www.iom.int/sites/g/files/tmzbdl2616/files/2018-07/M...