Interrelations between Public Policies, Migration and Development in Georgia
Interrelations between Public Policies, Migration and Development in Georgia is the result of a project carried out by the Caucasus Research Resource Center (CRRC-Georgia) and the OECD Development Centre, in collaboration with the State Commission on Migration Issues (SCMI) and with support from the European Union. The project aimed to provide policy makers with evidence on the way migration influences specific sectors – the labour market, agriculture, education and investment and financial services – and, in turn, how sectoral policies affect migration. The report addresses three dimensions of the migration cycle that have changed remarkably in Georgia over the last 20 years: emigration, remittances and return.
The results of the empirical work confirm that even though migration contributes to the development of Georgia, the potential of migration is not fully exploited. One explanation is that, despite headway in the field of migration and development through the creation of the SCMI, not all policy makers in Georgia take migration sufficiently into account in their respective policy areas. Georgian authorities therefore need to adopt a more coherent policy agenda and better integrate migration into their sectoral strategies to enhance the contribution of migration to development in the country.
Migration and agriculture in Georgia
OECD Development Centre
While the importance of agriculture to Georgia’s GDP has declined, the sector continues to play an important role – contributing to the livelihoods of around half the population. Despite being one of the government’s top priority sectors for development, agriculture suffers from a lack of access to finance, infrastructure, inputs and entrepreneurial skills. Many individuals have emigrated from agricultural households in Georgia to seek work in neighbouring countries. This chapter assesses the role played by migration in Georgia’s farming sector, as well as the influence of agricultural policies on migration. The chapter presents analysis of data gathered from the IPPMD survey of 1 089 farming households across the country. The findings have policy relevance in terms of the role of government support to the labour market to fill shortages opened up by rural emigration, how remittances can be harnessed more productively, and the value of return migration.