Call for more incentives for migrants

Foreigners wait to speak with representatives from a Chinese company at a recruitment fair held exclusively for foreign nationals in Beijing. The fair was hosted by China's State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs in November. Wang Jing / For China Daily

Greater care for the well-being of immigrants would help China attract more high-level talent, migration experts say.

William Lacy Swing, director general of the International Organization of Migration, says migrants to China remain inadequately integrated.

The organization issued the Chinese version of its 2013 World Migration Report in Beijing on May 19, and it pointed out that the general well-being of migrants from high-income countries to low-income countries is less satisfactory than of those who migrate the other way.

The number of migrants to China has increased significantly over the past decade, the report says. There were 685,775 migrants in 2010, 35 percent more than in 2000. The number of foreigners with residence permits was 29 percent higher than in 2006.

Globally, there were 232 million migrants by the end of last year, 22 percent of whom were highly skilled workers and 33 percent who were classified as mid-level skilled workers.

The organization invited the Gallup World Poll to examine more than 25,000 migrants in more than 150 countries to assess what life is like for them, whether they migrate to or between rich countries, or to and between poorer countries.

The survey found that while the earnings of those whose have moved to China tend to go further in a relatively less expensive environment, they also tend to have fewer social contacts and are less likely to have someone they can count on in emergencies.

China is an increasingly attractive destination for migrants due to its rapid economic growth and demographic changes. Its labor market needs are outstripping supply, which has led to a rise in wages and greater demand for foreign labor.

However, despite growing immigration, China's enormous economic growth is not proportionately reflected in the numbers of foreigners working in the country, the report says.

"Unlike other countries, China lacks an official policy to attract skilled foreign workers," Swing says.

Par Liljert, head of the liaison office of the International Organization For Migration in China, says China faces difficulties in attracting top talent.

"You have to view it from a holistic point of view and see how the policies can change to give talent mobility more comfort and more welfare."

Wang Huiyao, director of the Center for China and Globalization, says skilled workers in specific fields is a small pool.

"Compared with Chinese skilled workers who migrate abroad, China attracts very few people.

"China has to offer a competitive, complete package of incentives to attract foreign experts and skilled overseas Chinese.

"The package needs not only to cover salary, but also personal growth and political and social environments."

yangyao@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily Africa Weekly 06/27/2014 page15)