Page 22 - RusRPTMay19

the Soviet Union in 1991, according to Institute of Social Analysis and Forecasting at RANEPA in a report released on April 9, as cited by Vedomosti. In 2018, a total of 124,900 foreigners arrived in Russia, while in each quarter, except the first, the inflow was almost half as high as a year earlier, ISAF said. Thanks to the visa-free entry and lack of need for work permits the other former Soviet republics enjoy, Russia has long been the destination of choice for migrant workers as wages are several times higher and most migrants already have networks of friends and relations in Russia to smooth entry. But as incomes stagnate and countries like Ukraine gain access to the EU the numbers of migrants have fallen sharply in recent years. The total number of people who arrived in Russia in 2018 decreased by 4% compared with 2017, while those who left the country increased by 16.9%. Fewer migrants came from almost all countries except Azerbaijan, Armenia and Turkmenistan, but with these the migration increase grew only slightly. Hardest of all has been the influx of people from Ukraine and from Uzbekistan, which in the past were the largest sources of migration. The temporary influx of migrants from Ukraine after the events of 2014–2015 supported migration growth to Russia in 2014–2015, partly in 2016, says Mkrtchyan, but without the “Ukrainian factor” migration would have been falling already in 2014. There are some three million Ukrainians living in Russia, by far the largest expat Ukrainian community, but in recently years most emigrants from Ukraine have chosen to go to Poland, where there are now 2mn expat Ukrainians.
According to a new Gallup poll, in 2018, 20% of Russians wanted to permanently move to another country, an increase from 17% in 2017. The increase may be of concern to the country, which experienced a population decline last year for the first time in a decade. Those with the most desire to move to another country are people aged 15 to 29, at 44%. People aged 46 to 60 are least likely to want to move, at 9%. Additionally, more educated people report that they want to leave Russia, with 24% of people with at least a college education saying so. People residing in urban landscapes of the country are more likely than rural residents to want to leave, 23% compared to 13%. Among Russians who want to move to other countries, most, 15%, would like to move to Germany, followed by 12% who want to move to the US Five% want to move to Japan, Canada and Spain and 4% name France as their desired destination.
22 RUSSIA Country Report May 2019 www.intellinews.com