By Peter Apps

LONDON, Oct 26 (Reuters) - A proposed European Union scheme to attract highly skilled migrants risks draining poor countries of essential staff, according to officials and aid agencies.

The planned "blue card" scheme -- similar to the United States' "green card" -- aims at making the EU more attractive in a battle with other Western countries for technology workers and hospital staff, increasingly needed to plug labour gaps.

But experts say it will increase an existing brain drain from developing countries and make it more difficult for them to improve their national health.

"This is a new form of colonisation, of discrimination, and it will be very hard to find support for it among southern countries," said Moroccan international economic law professor Tajeddine El Husseini.

"They spend a lot of money educating and training technical students and then in the end the northern countries will cream off the best ... it is a big mistake and a criminal act of the north to drain the south of its brainpower," he told Reuters on Thursday.

Remittances -- payments sent back by foreign workers to their home countries -- provide crucial financial support for many families. But many say the overall effect of the brain drain is deeply corrosive.

South African Finance Minister Trevor Manuel has called the process a "self reinforcing, deteriorating spiral".

Liberian Health Minister Walter Gwenigale said the EU scheme could make rebuilding his country's health system after years of war almost impossible.

"I don't even want to hear about it," he told Reuters in a telephone interview on Thursday.

"If we have a programme in Europe to get qualified people that is a real threat to my programmes ... All of the African countries are complaining about this brain drain but when we talk no one is really giving us straight answers."

MAY COST LIVES

The European Commission said the proposal, presented on Tuesday, includes measures to avoid the brain drain effects, especially in Africa.

"The proposal promotes ethical recruitment standards to limit -- if not ban -- active recruitment by member states in developing countries already suffering from serious brain drain," the European Commission said in a statement.

But with many skilled workers, including doctors, keen to leave the poor countries where they trained, many observers say simply stopping active recruiting may not be enough. If they can get the visas, skilled staff will find their way.

Aid agency World Vision said it understands skilled workers want to use their training to get themselves and their families a better life but it fears the proposed scheme may cost lives.

"Already half a million women die of complications in pregnancy a year in the developing world and taking skilled workers is not going to do any favours," World Vision UK health adviser Rebecca Cooper said.

"I think it's quite hypocritical. It doesn't make sense to keep increasing the aid budget year on year and say we want to help if we are doing this."

If unanimously agreed by the EU states, the blue card would offer candidates a fast-track procedure to obtain work permits. It faces resistance from some countries reluctant to let the EU have a say in migration policies. (additional reporting by Tom Pfeiffer in Rabat)

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