There's an assumption that a new generation stepping out into the job market will bring with them fresh ideas and new energy, paving the path forward for their country's future.

But what if that generation of young people took all of their skills somewhere else?

This is called brain drain. It's the outflow of essential minds from countries to regions with more opportunity.

Today, this drain is emerging as a major concern for the future of West Africa, where talented and capable

professionals, doctors, engineers, are leaving their home countries.

Among the concerns of this brain drain is that the future of Africa will be left to a new wave of

military leaders rather than an aspiring professional class. The future

prosperity of the

prosperity of the world's youngest continent is at risk if it loses its talent. The contagion effect where corruption, coups, and lack of economic opportunity

lead people to leave, driving further instability, could make matters even worse.

I'm Gabrielle Sierra, and this is why it matters.

Today, can West African countries escape this vicious brain cycle? The emigration of expertise out of Africa, not just in terms of brain, in terms of the medical doctors, the nurses, the

architects, the lawyers, the engineers.

That's the classic definition of brain injury. It is true. But what tends to get left out of the conversation?

It's also the brown dream, right? Professional footballers. Plumbers.

This is Ebenezer Obadare. I'm the Douglas

the long senior fellow for Africa's studies at the Council of Foreign Relations. I

like to say that I cover everything under the African son.

Every young person who thinks there is no future ahead for them

wants to live, which is why if you look at the numbers at the demographic of people in the border with Mexico trying to cross over into the United States,

and the increasing number of those people are young Africans, Nigerians, Senegalese, Gambians, Syrians,

Syrians who have stored away on ships and just look for different

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