Moldovans Immigrate to Russia and Ukraine...

[Admin]

Reference this article -- http://social.moldova.org/stiri/eng/12938/

It says 3,310 Moldovans went to Russia - 2,057 went to Ukraine - and a total of more than 6,800 left the country in 2005.

It also says that only 2,056 people immigrated INTO Moldova - so obviously more people are departing the country than entering.

The statistics which I have difficulty interpreting are these:

1,130 (of the 2,056) are former Moldovan residents - and more than 64% of those going to Russia return to Moldova whereas only 21% of those leaving to Ukraine return to Moldova.

Does that mean that Moldovans prefer to STAY in Ukraine more than Russia?? Elen, what do YOU think??

- Dan

[andrewfi]

From what I remember of my time in Moldova, people leave Moldova to the richer countries of Ukraine, Russia and Romania to go make their fortune. The streets of Moscow are reputedly paved with gold, but I know that the experiences of at least one young Moldavian guy give the lie to that idea.

People leave Moldova to live in Ukraine for the fairly long term, access is relatively easy and cheap and cultural distance not so great. Russia is where one goes to make a quick buck and return.

Kinda like in the UK, folk might go to work in the middle east for a lot of money and return after a few months/years; but they might go to the US with the intention of staying for the medium/long term.

[Elen]

. Russia is where one goes to make a quick buck and return.

We can only dream about THAT 

[andrewfi]

I do not suggest it is true, but it is what some, otherwise intelligent, people believe. Thing is, poverty is relative and Moldova is about the poorest county in Europe, unless one counts Transdniestria as a seperate country, in which case it is the second pooorest. There is no shortage of Moldavians in Ukraine and Russia who can attest to the state of their aspirations.

[Bruno]

Estimates say that between 600,000 and a million Moldavians are currently out of the country seeking work, while one third of those who remain state that they would leave if they had a chance. They usually provide manual labour on Romanian farms and work in construction in Russia.
http://www.migratie.md/interview/762/

Thing is, poverty is relative and Moldova is about the poorest county in Europe

The legal minimum monthly wage was $7.40 (100 Moldavian lei) for those employed by the state and $11.10 (150 Moldavian lei) for those employed by private firms. Neither minimum wage provided a decent standard of living for a worker and family. A minimum of $1.30 (18 Moldavian lei) continued to be used as a basis for calculating pensions, scholarships, and fines. According to preliminary data from the Department of Statistics, the average monthly salary during the year was $51 (691.9 Moldavian lei). The average in the private sector was $58.30 (791.2 Moldavian lei), and in the public sector $41 (555.8 Moldavian lei). Due to severe budgetary constraints, the Government and private sectors often did not meet payrolls for employees.
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2002/18381.htm

Seem that Russian and Ukrainian are a relative part of the Moldavian population ( from 2004 census ) :
- Moldavians / Romanians : 78.4%
- Ukrainian : 8.4%
- Russian : 5.8%
I am not sure that the % of Moldavians in Russia or Ukraine are so high!

Now, the positive side for Moldova :
The economy returned to positive growth, of 2.1% in 2000 and 6.1% in 2001. Growth remained strong in 2002, in part because of the reforms and because of starting from a small base.

Does that mean that Moldavians prefer to STAY in Ukraine more than Russia?? Elen, what do YOU think??

They don't prefer STAY in Ukraine... a part of Moldova is become Ukrainian territory after the second world war...

" After World War II, parts of Eastern Moldova were turned into the Soviet Socialist Republic of Moldavia, and its southern (Bugeac) and northern (north Bukovina) most parts were handed over to Ukraine. "

The original population of Moldavia was about 9,608,600 people... The partition of the country have make drop the population to 3,388,000 ( census 2004 )... 4,681,555 people ( census 2002 ) was given to Romania and 1,539,000 ( census 2001 ) to Ukraine... A lot of Moldavians living in Ukraine are living on the ground of their parents...

Formerly ruled by Romania as part of the principality of Moldavia, Eastern Moldova was occupied by the Soviet Union (with consent from Nazi Germany) in 1940 as a consequence of a secret protocol attached to the 1939 Nazi-Soviet Pact.  :hairraising:  On 2 August 1940, the Soviet government created the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic (Moldavian SSR), with its capital at Chisinau (Kishinėv, in Russian), by joining most of Eastern Moldavia (known as Bessarabia during its occupation by the Russian Empire) with a portion of the Moldavian ASSR (the rest was assigned to the Ukrainian SSR). In creating the Moldovan SSR, Eastern Moldavia (Bessarabia) was once again divided, severely undermining its historical and economic integrity.Several southern regions and access points to the Black Sea through the mouth of the Danube River (the city of Izmail) and Nistru estuary (the city of Bilhorod-Dnistrovs'kyi) were ceded to Ukraine, leaving the Moldavian SSR landlocked.
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/History_of_Moldova/World_War_II