Dubai, Sep 6 - Some 70,000 Arab university graduates migrate annually to foreign countries for jobs, while 54 percent of Arab students studying abroad do not return to their native places, resulting in huge economic losses for governments in the region, WAM news agency reported.

Arab countries, which make substantial investments for educating and training youths, lose over $1.5 billion due to migration of graduates for overseas jobs, while recipient countries exploit the refined talent without having to spend on education, a study conducted by Department of Population and Migration Policies of the 22-member Arab League said.

In light of the present economic realities, an opportunity has therefore opened for talent-exporting countries within the Arab World to introduce policies to reverse the trend of brain drain, the study noted.

It urged the Arab countries to formulate measures to create rewarding work and investment opportunities at home to stop the mass migration of graduates for overseas jobs.

Citing statistics obtained from the Arab League, ILO, UNESCO and other Arab and international organisations, it noted that about 100,000 scientists, doctors and engineers leave Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Tunis, Morocco and Algeria annually.

Seventy percent of the scientists do not return home, while about 50 percent of doctors, 23 percent of engineers and 15 percent of scientists move to Europe, the US and Canada.