Kyrgyzstan: labor migrants need social protection, investment incentives
BISHKEK (TCA) — There are about 100 thousand Kyrgyz labor migrants in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan’s State Migration Service says. Some of them work legally in the regions closer to Kyrgyzstan — the South-Kazakhstan, Karaganda and Almaty oblasts and Almaty city. Host state for migrants The problems faced by labor migrants in Kazakhstan including the absence of labor contracts and difficulties with the registration and obtaining of permits were discussed during a teleconference in Bishkek earlier this month. Citizens of Kyrgyzstan can stay in Kazakhstan for a month without registration. Within a pilot project, migration services of the two countries established a Migration Services Center in Astana which showed good results, and such centers will be created in all regional centers of Kazakhstan by the end of the year. When it comes to migration, Central Asian states are traditionally known as donor countries, whose migrants mainly look for jobs in Russia. The exception is Kazakhstan, which in recent years has become a host state for migrants, changing the economic balance in the region. In 2016, the influx of labor migrants to Kazakhstan doubled compared to 2000 and continues to grow. Many labor migrants from neighboring Central Asian states consider Kazakhstan more attractive than Russia. According to the International Organization for Migration in Almaty, the total amount of labor migrants in Kazakhstan in 2017 was two million people, mainly from neighboring countries. As a result, Kazakhstan is increasing its economic influence in the region. However, the situation may change when the Russian economy improves. At the same time, the economies of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan are dependent on remittances from labor migrants. According to the latest data, the amount of remittances from Russia is almost 37% of Tajikistan's GDP. Vulnerable migrants Women and children are still the most vulnerable migrants, says a report that monitored the implementation of the law of the Kyrgyz Republic on state support of compatriots abroad, which was recently discussed by the Kyrgyz Parliament. Women migrants experience serious difficulties with reproductive health. Women who have given birth to a child in a foreign state experience much more difficulties than their compatriots who gave birth to children in their homeland. Their children are also vulnerable, the report says. The legal status of migrants is important in obtaining access to medical services. If migrants have not entered into labor contracts with their employers and accordingly do not have social protection, they do not have access to medical services. Authorities of Kyrgyzstan should provide support to socially unprotected categories of compatriots on the basis of international treaties and in accordance with the legislation of the country. However, control over the implementation of the law showed that the Ministry of Labor and Social Development of Kyrgyzstan does not consider compatriots abroad to be beneficiaries of social protection services, the report says. Law execution The Law "On state policy to support compatriots abroad", adopted five years ago, remains valid but its legal regulation is outdated and requires improvement, MPs told a press conference in Bishkek....
