Brain drain, brain gain, economic refugee or neocolonialism: An African Church’s dilemma

Brain drain, brain gain, economic refugee or neocolonialism: An African Church’s dilemma

Martin Mujinga

Issue: Vol. 7 No.9 2026 Article 4 pp.2525 – 2537
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.2026794 Published online 23rd October 2026

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ABSTRACT

Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, there has been an exodus of professionals from Africa to Europe or North America. These migrations did not spare the church. Most mainline churches in Africa lost senior and educated pastors who moved to join other conferences, and some joined their spouses, who were employed in care work. This paper is motivated by the need to understand the role of neo-colonialism in these phenomena. It grapples with questions such as: Is South-North migration a deliberate brain drain for Africa? Is it an intended brain gain for the host countries? Is it an economic refuge for those who involuntarily migrate? To what extent is this influx of migration a form of neocolonialism? To respond to these questions, the paper employs Lee’s Push-Pull theory. The empirical study collected data through open-ended interviews conducted with six pastors who left Africa for the United Kingdom. The research challenges Western churches to consider compensating churches in Africa, as they deliberately lure their ministers to revive their “dying churches”. The paper contributes to scholarship by highlighting the impact of the church’s brain drain in the Global South and the church’s brain gain in the Global North. The paper lays bare how brain drain and brain gain remain neocolonial tools of the ministry of the word and the sacrament to the Global South churches.

Keywords: Brain Drain, Brain Gain, Economic Refugee, Neocolonialism, African Church

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ABOUT AUTHOR(S)

Revd. Dr Martin Mujinga is an Ordained Minister of the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe since 1999. He currently serves as the General Secretary of the Africa Methodist Council (AMC), which is a family of 44 Wesleyans, Methodists, and United Methodists in Africa. Before this appointment, He was the General Secretary of the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe and Academic Dean at the United Theological Seminary in Harare. Dr Mujinga is the Co-Secretary of the Anglican Methodist International Committee Dialogues. He holds a PhD from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, majoring in African contextual theologies. MA and a BA Hons from the University of Zimbabwe. He is a C2 National Research Foundation scholar with 63 publications in his name, including books, book chapters, and peer-reviewed journal articles. Dr Mujinga is a Research Fellow/ Associate for the University of South Africa and Stellenbosch University in South Africa. He is an External Examiner for postgraduate studies at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, University of South Africa, University of Pretoria, and North-West University in South Africa. He is a peer reviewer for more than ten international journals. His research interests are in Wesleyan Studies, theologies of migration, African culture, and chaplain ministry. Dr Mujinga has presented at several academic and ecumenical platforms in Africa, Asia, and Europe. He is married to Meloreen Mujinga, an ordained minister of the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe and a professional counsellor. The marriage was blessed with three children, Chikomborero, Ropafadzo and Nyasha.

TO CITE ARTICLE

Mujinga, Martin. “Brain Drain, Brain Gain, Economic Refugee or Neocolonialism: An African Church’s Dilemma.” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 7, no.9 (2026): 2525 – 2537. https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.2026794