Prodigal returns

This past week I've been to a string of farewell gatherings. Friends and colleagues said goodbye because they were going back home.

There were two who were made redundant because of “lean management'' in their workplaces, but the other three simply decided that they had had enough of being migrant workers and had planned their exit from Dubai six months ago.

They were going back to better jobs, schools were organised for the children and the extended families were waiting for them to get back and become one with the fold. My natural question at each farewell has been, “So, how do you feel about this?'' and I am glad to report that no one was bitter.

“We had it pretty good up until now,'' said one redundant couple. “We've built a pretty good portfolio of assets and cash and we are going to pursue a few dreams that we've kept on hold.''

The other three were just happy to be going home. Each had for a long time “chased the money'' – just like 200 million migrant workers worldwide – and simply yearned to be in a country where they spoke the language, knew the people and their rights were respected.

Dubai, I find out, is not alone in seeing cutbacks and redundancies. The trend is international. It's happening in China which is sending home its Korean workers, in Malaysia where thousands of Bangladeshis are homeward bound and workers from Macau, Singapore and even America are going home; some to further joblessness and poverty and some to better opportunities.

According to the latest figures from the UN and the World Bank, migrant workers worldwide have remitted an estimated $305.3 billion (Dh1.1 trillion) to their home countries and the forecast for 2009 is $290 billion (Dh1.06 trillion); so, these countries, especially those in the Indian sub-continent and other parts of Asia, will be $15.3 billion (Dh56.1 billion) poorer.

The plus side of course is that although there is a loss of remittances, the countries at the receiving end of these prodigal sons and daughters are getting a major infusion of world-class skills, knowledge and work experience.

Also, while large numbers are returning home, a considerable number are leaving for jobs on foreign shores, so the total number of migrant workers is actually on the rise. The circle turns until another cyclical recession catalyses further change.