OSCE OFFICE PRESENTS FINDINGS ON RETURN MIGRATION TO ARMENIA

armradio.am
15.01.2009 16:51

A comprehensive study on returnee flows and reintegration challenges
in Armenia was presented today at the OSCE Office in Yerevan.

The publication on return migration to Armenia covers the period
2002 to 2008, and is the third in a series of studies conducted by
the Office following reports on labour migration conducted in 2005
and 2007.

"The study provides a well-grounded picture of the return and
reintegration process in Armenia and aims to help revise and reform
Armenia’s migration policies and legislation," said Sven Holdar,
Democratization Programme Officer at the OSCE Office in Yerevan.

The analysis, based on in-depth interviews with returnees, revealed
that in the period between 2002 and 2007, most external migration
involved labour migrants leaving mainly for Russia. The majority
returned to Armenia at least once, but such returns were predominantly
temporary.

The employment statistics in Armenia show that some 30% of migrants
would be unemployed if they chose to stay in Armenia. The findings also
showed that many of the problems connected with the reintegration
of returnees in Armenia stemmed from the mismatch between their
expectations and the reality they found back in Armenia.

The study was prepared by the local non-governmental organization
Advanced Social Technologies, with OSCE Office support and the a ctive
participation of the Migration Agency of the Ministry of Territorial
Administration.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress