The phenomenon of skills mobility, commonly referred to as "brain drain," has become a highly controversial issue. Indeed, in today's knowledge economy, the loss of highly skilled human resources is a critical problem for any country, particularly for developing countries struggling to position themselves in the global market.

The last three decades have seen the introduction of a number of policies aimed at combating brain drain.

These policies have been largely inspired by an approach that views the migration of highly skilled human resources as a loss for the country of origin. These policies, aimed either at retaining highly skilled people through restrictive measures or at attracting them to their home countries through various incentive programs, have not had much success in stemming the tide of highly skilled migration.

A promising new strategy has emerged over the past decade; it is called the “diaspora option.” The diaspora option aims to mobilize highly skilled expatriates to contribute to the social and economic development of their home countries.

The diaspora option develops from a position entirely different from traditional approaches in that it recognizes that highly skilled expatriates, while they may still have loyalties to their home countries, might not necessarily want to return home.

The unique feature of the diaspora option is that expatriates do not have to return to their home country, but can bring their skills and expertise to their home country wherever they are in the world.

The diaspora option sees the creation of intellectual networks, mainly scientific and technological, of expatriates establishing links with their counterparts in their country of origin and participating in the development process of their country of origin.

These links are largely, but not exclusively, facilitated by advances in information technology, particularly the development of the Internet.