Recent migration tendencies from Georgia

Tamar Shinjiashvili, Institute of Demography and Sociology, Sokhumi State University, Georgia
Lia Akhaladze, Sokhumi State University, Georgia

Social-economic crisis of the beginning of 1990s and ethno-political conflicts have caused unprecedented scales of emigration from Georgia. In the conditions of economic collapse it has emerged mass stationary and labor emigration. A significant contingent of ethnic minorities returned to their historical motherlands (Russia, Greece, Israel etc) and the part of ethnic majority departed abroad as labor emigrants to save their families from famine. In the period between two population censuses, 1989 and 2002, due to emigration Georgia has lost more than one million of citizens that consists a fifth of its population. Labor emigration has caused basically a negative influence on the demographic development of Georgia. Emigration caused imbalance of the sexual-age structure and demographic aging of the population of Georgia; migration processes have caused extreme decrease of reproductive functions of emigrants; labor migrants at the fertile age have higher education, that reduces the demographic potential of Georgia and causes “brain drain.” Only a small percentage of emigrants are able to raise their qualification, while the rest become disqualified. Due to the economic stagnation of the country, the emigration disposition is still high in the population of Georgia, especially among families whose members have become labor migrants abroad. The majority of the youth is ready psychologically for going abroad and they will depart if they have any possibility and chances. The paper presents the analysis of the emigration processes from Georgia, whereas focusing on positive and negative consequences. There is discussed many aspects of emigration: causes and motives for emigration, migration statistics, destination countries, structural characteristics of migrants and spectrum of their employment, migration results and future perspectives.