Kalam says brain drain's impact is minimal

President A P J Abdul Kalam on Monday sought to dispel fears about the impact of brain drain on developing countries like India and Philippines, saying if a certain percentage of population goes abroad to acquire knowledge, there is nothing to lose.

Replying to a question at an interactive session with students of the Philippines Science High School, he said 40 percent of the 85 million population of Philippines are working abroad, while in India, the number stands at 10 million out of nearly one billion people.

"If a certain percentage of people go abroad to acquire knowledge, our countries do not stand to lose much," he said.

However, if developing countries like India and Philippines develop their own research and development facilities, those who have gone abroad will return, and it will also encourage foreign scientists to move to these countries, the President stressed.