Labor migration and development of human resources of the Kyrgyz Republic

Abstract

The purpose of the presented research was to study the impact of labor migration on the development of human resources in Kyrgyzstan. Before collecting the data, several theoretical assumptions were identified, ranging from personal experiences of migrant workers to their remittances and new skills acquired during the migration process. A common finding of the literature on migration is that migrants are more likely to choose self-employment upon return to their origin countries. This has led to the belief that return migration stimulates entrepreneurship in source countries and hence support economic development. In this paper we test these assertions, drawing on the study of life in Kyrgyzstan, a rich longitudinal data set from transition economies with high levels of international temporary migration. We find that for return migrants, self-employment is often a temporary occupational choice, suggesting that self-employment serves as a 'parking lot'. This research used case studies with quantitative and qualitative data, as well as the authors' sociological studies. Analysis of interviews with 25 current labor migrants in Russia and 25 repatriates in Kyrgyzstan concerned the following aspects: problems and benefits of migration; development of new skills; use of money transfers; reasons to return; employment or self-employment; remittances as investments and governments assistance in entrepreneurial activities of returnees. According to the research results, it was concluded that labor migration has an impact on development, which falls within the framework of the development of human resources. This is especially noticeable with regard to remittances and new skills brought by labor migrants to the Kyrgyz Republic.