Palau governm ent seeking t o plug t he brain drain
Stay home , w ill you
Palau governm ent seeking t o plug t he brain drain
K oror ? There is an increasing number of college-level Palauans who have taken advantage of the summer fellowship program ? returning home during the summer semester for internship with their potential future employers . The program is a recent government initiative to encourage Palauan students to explore job possibilities back home once they have graduated from college .
? Last summer alone had a larger group of 21 students who were awarded the fellowship program since the program began in 2013 ,? said Chur Oip , Scholarship Coordinator of the Palau National Scholarship Board .
Since its inception four years ago , the program has interned a total of 54 students . At least 16 have returned home for employment ; others are still pursuing their undergraduate or graduate degrees .
Palau has been losing its educated and skilled citizens to better opportunities in the United States and its territories . The fellowship program seeks to stem the tide of many young educated Palauans choosing to pursue careers and settle outside of Palau despite millions of dollars in scholarship funds invested by the national government over many years . The Palau National Scholarship Office shoulders round-trip airfares for eligible juniors and one-way tickets for graduating seniors , who will participate in the eight-week internship program . Each intern also receives a $ 400 stipend every two weeks .
Out-migration is more acute for young Palauans leaving home for greener pasture , contributing to the shrinkage of the nation ? s population . Besides
the lure of higher pay outside of Palau , many students fail to return because they feel there is shortage of attractive work opportunities back home .
The recent draft Palau National Youth Policy 2016-2010 noted a disproportionate decline in Palau ? s population affecting those from the ages of 20-24 , the college bound age . ? If this disproportionate population decline continues , it likely will have a significant impact on Palau ' s future development , impacting Palau ' s already-limited workforce and further contributing to population declines ,? states the document , which is awaiting endorsement by the Palau National Congress .
The paper recommends further efforts be made to address outward migration specifically among this age group , since this is the age range when most individuals enter the workforce and begin families .
The demographic data not only shows that the number of youth as a percentage of the total population has declined since Palau ' s independence 22 years ago , but also that the overall population in Palau is aging . In 1990 , the median age of Palau ? s population was 25.6 years . This number has slowly but steadily increased with each census . The 1995 median age was 28.1 years and it increased to 30.8 years in 2000 and reached 32.3 in 2005 . It has since increased to 33.3 years in 2016 as estimated by CIA World Factbook .
After the Compact of Free Association
By Ongerung Kam bes Kesolei
agreement between Palau and United States came into existence in 1994 , an exodus of Palauans seeking better life outside started . Under the agreement , citizens of Palau are granted uninhibited access to reside and work in the United States and its territories , and eligibility to volunteer for service in the U . S . Armed Forces . In return , the agreement allows the United States to operate armed forces in Palau , to demand land for operating bases , and excludes the militaries of other countries without U . S . permission .
With the Palau national leaders hoping to turn the tide and keeping their skilled and educated young citizens at home , their task has been made more difficult with lure of the U . S . military that provides the quickest way for the youth to see the world , get a steady paycheck and pay for college .
It is estimated that around 500 Palauans are active in the armed forces , many of them recruited out of high school campuses . The recruits , who establish stability overseas , use such economic security as a passport to bring over other family members to join them .
A year after the summer fellowship program was established ? the Skilled Palauan Workforce Investment Act ? to upgrade skills and increase entry level pay was put in place to mainstream and integrating youth development into the work of both the public sector and the private sector . The idea was to keep Palauans home-bound during their productive years .
Currently , foreign workers make up 40 percent of the total labor force , mainly in the skilled labor industries . In contrast to Palauan citizens , more so with the youth population , continue to be an underutilized resource in the local country . The Skilled Palauan Workforce Investment Act was designed to mandate Palau Community College , the country ? s sole institute of higher learning , to create a vocational certification program in which an emphasis is placed upon building technical
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