Friday, November 11, 2005

Russia: Immigration Likely To Increase, Mitigating Population Deficit / RADIO FREE EUROPE / RADIO LIBERTY, 10 Nov 2005

http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2005/11/8957C86A-EECD-4754-87A1-FE9C19EBA8D8.html
Victor Yasmann
"Russian demographers have long foreseen the country's population crisis. A low birthrate combined with a high mortality rate means that in 2006 the number of pensioners will exceed the number of young men starting their working lives. The gap is almost certain to grow in the future. According to UN experts, the Russian economy needs up to 2 million new workers every year; Russian experts put the figure nearer to 700,000.

To address the population deficit, demographers have advised the Russian government to expatriate ethnic Russians from the CIS and other countries, and legalize non-Russians who are currently living and working illegally in Russia."