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Catia Batista

Nova School of Business and Economics, NOVAFRICA, Portugal, and IZA@LISER, Luxembourg

I am pleased to contribute to World of Labour as a platform that connects rigorous research with real-world policy. My work on international migration and economic development seeks to generate credible evidence that can improve how migration and development policies are designed and implemented.

World of Labour role

Author

Current position

Full Professor of Economics, Nova School of Business and Economics, Portugal

Research interest

International migration, private sector development, education, development economics

Website

https://catiabatista.org/

Positions/functions as a policy advisor

National Advisor for Migration and Asylum Policies; Consultant for the World Bank ; Consultant for the International Growth Center.

Qualifications

PhD in Economics, University of Chicago, 2005

Selected publications

  • "Is Mobile Money Changing Rural Africa? Evidence from a Field Experiment." Review of Economics and Statistics, 107:3 (2025): 835–844 (with P. C. Vicente).

  • "Brain Drain or Brain Gain? Effects of High-Skilled International Emigration on Origin Countries." Science, 388 (2025): 6749 (with D. Han, J. Haushofer, G. Khanna, D. McKenzie, A. M. Mobarak, C. Theoharides, and D. Yang).

  • "Testing Classic Theories of Migration in the Lab." Journal of International Economics, 145 (2023): 103826 (with D. McKenzie).

  • "Can Information and Alternatives to Irregular Migration Reduce “Backway” Migration from The Gambia?" Journal of Development Economics, 165 (2023): 103153 (with T. Bah, F. Gubert, and D. McKenzie).

  • "Closing the Gender Profit Gap." Management Science, 68:12 (2022): 8553–8567 (with S. Sequeira and P. C. Vicente).

Article(s)

  • The brain drain from developing countries Updated

    Brain drain need not be a curse—it can be a catalyst: under the right conditions, selective emigration promotes skills acquisition and economic development in the country of origin.

    Frédéric DocquierCatia Batista, April 2026
    Brain drain refers to the selective emigration of highly educated people, who often have stronger incentives to migrate and face fewer barriers. At first glance, this seems to be an adverse situation: losing doctors, engineers or teachers could hinder development. However, migration can also be beneficial by spurring investment in skills, fueling remittances, fostering innovation, business links, and transfers of knowledge and norms. The net impact depends on the skills involved and the context, creating an opportunity for policies that transform emigration into a driver of development.
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