An Economic Theory about the primary drivers for mass migration and population collapse.

Living in South Africa, I find myself constantly being asked by friends in Europe or the US why we migrate to their countries. Their points about cultural degradation and loss of national identity bother me so much that I cannot help but try to justify the movements as a natural response to economic and political primary drivers.<br><br>This theory is also inspired by the events in South Africa, with waves of Zimbabweans (2004-2019), northeastern Africans (2019-present), and lastly the wave of South Africans moving to Europe, Australia and the US (2021-present) that have shed light on various factors that drive both migration and population collapse.<br><br>The theory is as follows:<br><br>**Mass Migration**<br><br>1. Mass migration is driven by capital flight, not poverty.<br>2. When capital and job opportunities vanish, a country's skilled workforce is lost, causing mass migration as a result.<br>3. As opportunities near a point of collapse, primary drivers such as war, famine, and persecution serve as accelerators.<br>4. These drivers do not cause the skilled workforce to leave; they merely speed up the process of migration.<br><br>**Population Collapse**<br><br>1. Population collapse is caused by the loss of skilled workforce.<br>2. Failure to create jobs results in a decline in human development index (HDI).<br>3. Over time, this leads to population collapse due to a lack of skilled workforce.<br><br>**Evidence**<br><br>Migration and population collapse can be observed in various regions around the world, including Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Syria. The collapse of traditional industries like coal mining, manufacturing, and agriculture can lead to mass migration and population collapse for a region. For example, the decline of the coal mining industry in Eastern Europe caused mass migration to Western Europe.<br><br>The job market is where human capacity for development is primarily created. In summary, as the skilled workforce migrates from one region to another, job markets decline, and the cycle of population collapse accelerates.<br><br>Please let me know if you can think of any other factors that could drive mass migration or population collapse.