Abstract :
[en] Migration flows are shaped by a complex combination of self-selection and out-selection mechanisms, both
of which are affected by the presence of a diaspora abroad. In this paper, we analyze how existing diasporas
(the stock of people born in a country and living in another one) affect the size and human-capital structure
of current bilateral migration flows. Our analysis exploits a bilateral data set on international migration by
educational attainment from 195 countries to 30 OECD countries in 1990 and 2000. Based on simple microfoundations
and controlling for various determinants of migration, we found that diasporas increase
migration flows and lower their average educational level. Interestingly, diasporas explain majority of the
variability of migration flows and selection. This suggests that, without changing the generosity of family
reunion programs, education-based selection rules are likely to have moderate impact. Our results are highly
robust to the econometric techniques, accounting for the large proportion of zeros and endogeneity
problems.
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