MIGRATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT /ARMENIAN CASE/

MIGRATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT DEFINITION. “Migration is a process of moving, either across an international border, or within a State. It is a population movement, encompassing any kind of movement of people, whatever its length, composition and causes; it includes migration of refugees, displaced persons, uprooted people and economic migrants.” International organization for migration

IOM in Armenia Armenia joined IOM as a member in IOM activities in Armenia are grounded on a number of documents signed with the Government of Armenia: o Cooperation Agreement on Privileges and Immunities (1994) o Description and Protocol of the Capacity Building in Migration Management Programme (1996) o Project Agreement on Micro-enterprise Development (jointly with UNDP, 1997) IOM Objectives in Armenia To assist Armenia in achieving border management practices that strike the right balance between control and facilitation and are consistent with best international standards. To reduce and prevent the trafficking and smuggling of persons. To enhance the self-sufficiency and integration of returnees, trafficked victims, refugees, internally displaced and low income persons. To assist the Government in Labour Migration management. To enhance the capacity of national NGOs to address migration issues. To revitalize and develop rural communities. MIGRATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

Migration trends, globalization - Armenia saw unprecedented high rates and particular quality of migration flows, which went beyond the normal course of events growing into challenges that alarmingly affect different aspects of Armenian’s social life -According to the estimates of experts, 700,000-1,300,000 people (22-40% of Armenia’s 2008 nominal population) left Armenia and settled abroad during alone. -Besides the quantitative impact, such an unprecedented external movement (especially emigration) of a large percentage of the country’s total population, migration has affected public life and development. -Globalization can be considered as a assisting factor. Globalization has led to not only the global distribution of labor, the more free and extensive movement of capital and production resources across countries, the standardization of legislative, economic, and technological processes and the cultural approximation of countries, but also the migration of the population -Only about 20-25% of the emigrants from Armenia have settled in developed countries (to a small part, the emigrants settled in Eastern European countries that later joined the EU). The remaining part, i.e. the vast majority of the emigrants from Armenia, moved to post-Soviet countries, mostly the Russian Federation

MIGRATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT STATISTICAL INFORMATION 1. The first intensive wave of emigration from Armenia started back in According to unofficial sources, about 677,000 people had emigrated from Armenia by 1996, while some other sources put the figure for the 1990s at about 800,000.The more prevalent opinion, is that about 800,000-1,000,000 people have emigrated from Armenia to date. Reportedly, emigration from Armenia has mainly involved qualified human resources. 2. According to unofficial sources, about 46% of the emigrants had complete or incomplete university education, compared to only 25% in the general population of Armenia. During these years, one third of the specialists with university degrees in humanities and natural and technical sciences left Armenia. In those years, 75% of the emigrants were urban residents. The emigration of qualified human resources had significant negative effects on Armenia’s development process in several respects

MIGRATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT Migration and HD issues - Starting from 1991, the importance of issues related to the improvement and realization of the individual’s abilities grew among the causes of migration. - Pessimistic attitude towards the country’s development prospects - Migration processes in Armenia were driven by not only socio-economic causes, but also deeper rooted factors, which cannot be identified by quantitative research. -Due to various aspects of the Armenian family tradition and social culture, migration for Armenia has become a unique means of improving the conditions for human development. In this case one needs first to understand the new global trends concerning human development and the reactions in Armenia, the extent to which the human development challenges faced in Armenia are connected with the migration process and the current and anticipated positive and negative effects of migration on human development in Armenia.

NEGATIVE IMPACTS To sum up the analysis of the negative consequences of migration on HD, the following negative effects can be identified at the level of the individual: a) Obstruction of the growth and development of the capabilities of individuals with strong human potential; b) Creation of health risks with short-term and more dangerous long-term effects; c) Inadequate living and housing conditions for migrants, turning the period of migration into a negative period terms of HD for the individual; and d) Individuals with development potential were unable to turn human capabilities into capital, consequently in spite of earning the desired amount of money, migrants lose in the long run in terms of HD. Therefore, many university graduates turn into labour migrants selling physical force. POSITIVE IMPACTS In spite of all the negative consequences described above, migration has significant benefits as well. a) It’s considered in the first half of 2008, economic performance, the socio-economic conditions of the people and purchasing power fell mainly due to shrinking remittances from abroad. Research has shown that migrants’ remittances have been essential for their families and for economic growth in Armenia. It should be mentioned though that migration contributes significantly to improving key HD indicators such as living standards and children’s education in Armenia. Moreover, migration helps to solve health care problems. b)Migration enables people to actualize themselves. As people leave Armenia because of the lack of employment or the scarcity of professional or adequately-paying jobs, they generally gain better opportunities due to migration than they would in Armenia. MIGRATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

Positive effects at the individual level: Growth of people’s capabilities and opportunities; Increased competitiveness of migrants in domestic and foreign labour markets; Greater opportunities for the expansion and growth of cultural and social capital at the individual level; Contribution to forming the material and financial base of HD for the migrants’ families and generally a positive impact on human development indicators of Armenia; Contribution to greater individual mobility and chances of successful migration for the migrant’s and family members’ HD; Helping to protect, develop and realize the professional qualities acquired by the qualified human potential. As for the positive impact of migration on the human development process at the level of society and the state, the following outcomes can be highlighted: Migrants’ individual success in employment and money earned by migrants improves their families’ prosperity and positively influences the HD processes; Migration supports improved personal capabilities and investments in children’s education; Social and cultural capital accumulated at the level of the individual has indirect positive effects on the HD processes at the level of society and the state; Human qualities of migrants improve during migration, which helps to meet the economy’s demand for qualified labour force; Migrants’ remittances to family and relatives has a crucial impact on GDP growth and increased trade in Armenia by boosting purchasing power and generally making a positive impact on Armenia’s national `HD indicators. Without the contribution of migrants, Armenia’s indicators would be lower. MIGRATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

Armenia’s migration policies should be built on the human development framework that views migration as a tool for realization of the individual’s opportunities and freedoms’ 2009 National Human Development Report Migration data Immigrants (1000 persons) CIS Other countries Emigrants (1000 persons) CIS Other countries Net migration (1000 persons) CIS Other countries MIGRATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

T YPES OF MIGRANTS R USSIA U KRAINE O THER CISUSAE UROPE O THER Permanent migrants Labour migrants Student migrants Countries of destination MIGRATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT