OSCE
April 1 2005

OSCE Office organizes discussions on labour migration in Armenia

YEREVAN, 1 April 2005 – The current situation of labour migration in
Armenia was the focus of two meetings that took place this week in
Yerevan. They brought together international experts and
representatives of various Armenian governmental bodies dealing with
international labor migration.

The events were organized by the OSCE Office in Yerevan and the
Armenian Ministry of Labour and Social Issues and financially
supported by the United Kingdom.

During the events, the OSCE Office presented the results of its
review of Armenian legislation and administrative framework related
to international migration and examples of best practices from other
countries, as well as preliminary results of a nation-wide
sociological survey of households on labour migration. The Ministry
of Labour and Social Issues presented its labour migration strategy.

“Labour migration in Armenia is an important and challenging issue,”
said Ambassador Vladimir Pryakhin, the Head of the OSCE Office in
Yerevan. “During the 1990s, hundreds of thousands of Armenians left
the country in search of work. At the same time, this migration has
helped to bridge Armenia’s worst economic downturn.”

“The issue of labour migration remains one of the biggest concerns of
the Armenian Government,” said Ashot Yesayan, First Deputy Minister
of Labour and Social Issues. “We welcome the expertise of the OSCE
Office in this area.”

According to the findings of a recent survey, 14 % of households in
Armenia have been involved in labour migration in the past three
years and in more than half of the cases, the length of stay abroad
varied between 5 and 9 months.

“In recent years, Armenia’s economic growth has been robust and there
is a need to develop sound policies that will enable labour mobility
and also ensure conditions in which jobs are created at home,” said
Blanka Hancilova, Democratization Officer at the OSCE Office.

International migration is one of the OSCE priorities this year and
the main theme of the Thirteenth Economic Forum to be held in Prague
in May.

Key links and documents:
ARMENIAN VERSION

For further information, please contact:

Gohar Avagyan
OSCE Office in Yerevan

89 Teryan St.
375009, Yerevan
Armenia
Tel.: +374 1 54 10 62
+374 1 54 58 45

Fax: +374 1 54 10 61