And a good portion of the region's entrepreneurs come from abroad. The U.S. in some cases has managed to avoid crippling talent shortages by importing employees. Congress now is debating whether to double the number again. High levels of foreign graduate students in the U.S. also help, because many stay on. Now the rest of the world wants to do the same.
Officials naturally are eager to lure back Irish people who left the country in leaner times.
But Ireland's deputy prime minister recently turned up in India, where she wooed a gathering of local engineers. Singapore has increased the tax credits that it gives to companies bringing talent into the country, helping to defray the costs of recruitment and moving. It also has empowered a government agency to assist in recruiting foreign talent. That agency, Contact Singapore, helps stage job fairs and assists local employers in finding potential hires around the world. Even the European Union, which allows citizens from its 15 member nations to work freely across borders, is beginning to look more favorably on talented newcomers from outside Europe.