Philippe Legrain was interviewed about OPEN/Tent’s study on BBC World Service’s Newsday. Listen here. From 37 minutes in
Continue readingIPS on OPEN study: Refugees Bring Economic Benefits to Cities
Tharanga Yakupitiyage wrote about OPEN/Tent’s refugee study for Inter Press Service (IPS) on 20 May. Author of a new study “Refugees Work: A Humanitarian Investment that Yields Economic Dividends”, Legrain found that refugees and migrants are more likely to start new businesses that create wealth, employ local residents, and stimulate investment. He cites the co-founder of Apple, Steve Jobs, whose father was a Syrian migrant. In Berlin, a Syrian refugee …
Continue readingPolitical Scrapbook: Investing in Welcoming Refugees can Yield Nearly Twice the Amount in Economic Benefits
Political Scrapbook reported on OPEN/Tent’s refugee study on 18 May. It is the first comprehensive, international study of how refugees can contribute to advanced economies, and focuses on what returns a country can get by investing in refugees. How a country responds to refugees makes a big difference, its points out. At one extreme, the US gives refugees a burst of initial help, after which they are expected to fend for …
Continue readingEUObserver: Refugees will give EU economy huge boost
Nikolaj Nielsen wrote about OPEN/Tent’s study for EUObserver on 18 May. “Refugees are often seen as a burden to be shared or shirked, when in fact they are an opportunity to be welcomed,” he [Philippe Legrain] said in a statement. “With a suitable upfront investment and wise policies, hard-working refugees of all skill levels have a lot to contribute to the economy, individual businesses and the public sector.” Read the …
Continue readingLeft Foot Forward: Welcoming refugees pays economic dividends, if they’re allowed to work
Left Foot Forward reported on OPEN/Tent’s study on 18 May. Many [EU countries] provide the worst of both worlds: little help for refugees and high barriers to employment and enterprise. This breeds hardship and failure for refugees, and misplaced resentment towards them from locals. Greater investment in refugees combined with reforms to open up opportunities for progress are both economically and politically desirable.” The key policy recommendation is that countries should …
Continue readingBusiness Insider UK: A prominent economist destroyed the argument against rehoming refugees across Europe
Lianna Brinded wrote about OPEN/Tent’s refugee study for Business Insider UK on 18 May. Refugees can contribute economically in many ways: as workers of all skill levels, entrepreneurs, innovators, taxpayers, consumers and investors. Their efforts can help create jobs, raise the productivity and wages of local workers, lift capital returns, stimulate international trade and investment, and boost innovation, enterprise and growth. From a global perspective, enabling people to move to …
Continue readingVice News on OPEN’s study
Vice News’ piece on Australia’s asylum debate talks about OPEN/Tent’s study. It also noted that the only developed country where studies have attempted to measure refugees’ overall economic impact is Australia — and all have found that refugees net contribution is positive. Read the full piece here.
Continue readingCatholic Ireland on OPEN’s study: Benefits of welcoming refugees highlighted
Ann Marie Foley wrote about OPEN/Tent’s refugee study for Catholic Ireland on 19 May. Welcoming a refugee can cost up to €12,000 initially but over time they begin to work and pay tax and contribute to the economy, he told on RTE Radio 1 News. He suggested that, in Ireland, the sooner asylum seekers are allowed to work and their qualifications are recognised the sooner they will be able to …
Continue readingWashington Post on OPEN’s study: Why refugees should be seen as an investment, not a burden
Max Bearak covered OPEN/Tent’s refugee study in the Washington Post on 18 May. In a rare in-depth study of the long-term effects of refugees on host nations’ GDPs, researchers found that “investing one euro in refugee assistance can yield nearly two euros in economic benefits within five years.” Read his article in full here.
Continue readingInterviewed about refugee study by Lithuanian Public Radio
Philippe Legrain was interviewed about OPEN/Tent’s refugee study by Indre Anskaityte for LRT, Lithuanian Public Radio on 22 May. Listen here.
Continue reading