China to benefit from international migration: experts

World leading migration experts, from academia and practice fields, gathered in Beijing on Tuesday to discuss the country's development based on international migration and strategies to attract international talent.

"China ranked No. 4 on the list of the largest migrants sending countries in the world in 2014. China is not a small player in global migration," said Wang Huiyao, president of the Center of China and Globalization, a Beijing-based think tank, at the International Forum on Global Migration and Development.

China has enjoyed the benefits of domestic migration in the past two decades. During the urbanization drive, migrant workers have moved to cities and have made tremendous contributions to the economy. It is now time that the country moves forward to enjoy the benefits of international migration, Wang added.

Figure from the United Nation shows that 232 million people moved out of their native countries in 2013, 155 million in 1990, 178 million in 2000 and 214 million in 2010.

"Developed countries have particularly enjoyed the benefits of migration in technology and economy," Wang said, calling for Chinese authorities' attention to establish a system to attract more international talent.

The center published a report on Chinese international migration in March, analyzing migration affects from various perspectives.

"Overseas returnee talents value to be able to join the country's development, to make history over pragmatic reasons, including wages and working environment," said Liu Xuezhi, vice president of the Chinese Academy of Personnel Science, adding that the number of overseas returnees is highly correlated with the country's GPD based on his study.

China prioritizes attracting overseas returnee talent at current stage, Liu said, adding that the number of overseas returnees accounts for 90 percent of international talent working in China.

Howard Duncan, executive Head of Metropolis Project, an international network to study migration, agreed.

"A very small number of foreigners, as top talents, are working in China, and majority of them are overseas returnees," he said.

The Chinese government should be more confident to attract current active and young international talent to work in China, he suggested, adding that currently the government hires many retired professors and researchers.