On May 22^nd 2014 the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Central Asian Coordination Office organized, under the auspices of the 2014 VII Astana Economic Forum, a Roundtable on “Migration and Development in the Customs’ Union”. The Roundtable raised  awareness at the policy level about recent trends and provided High Level participants the opportunity to present Governments’ and IOM’s experience in facilitating labour migration in order to maximize  the development potential of South-South migration.

Kazakhstan is a country of transit, origin and destination in Central Asia and the wider CIS region at the same time in the ax of South-South migratory movements the corridor “Kazakhstan to Russian Federation, and vice versa” is considered to be a major one. With Kazakhstan’s robust economic development continuing in the next years, it is expected that the challenges of complex migration dynamics for both origin and destination countries will increase.  Cooperation frameworks together with polices that are well designed and can respond to labour market needs are necessary for the region to remain competitive and continue to grow. Current migration trends in Central Asia present significant development challenges as well as opportunities for development.

High Level Government Officials and IOM highlighted the importance of Migration Policy priorities in Kazakhstan:

Mr. Kuanysh Sultanov, the deputy of the Mazhilis of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Chairman of the Commission on Human Rights under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, emphasized that "Migration policy is one of the strategic directions of the state policy of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev in his Address to the Nation "Strategy" Kazakhstan- 2050": new policy of established state" noted ten major global challenges of the 21 century about the Republic of Kazakhstan and the region as a whole. One of these challenges is a global demographic imbalance. Taking this into consideration, as well as to protect the rights of migrant workers, the President instructed the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan to develop and adopt a comprehensive plan for dealing with migration, strengthen the control of migration flows from neighboring countries".

Mr. Salamat Amanbayev, the Chairman of the Committee on Migration of the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of the Republic of Kazakhstan,  noticed that "Within the framework of the Common Economic Space the labour migration issues are regulated by the Agreement on Legal Status of migrant workers and their families dated from November 19, 2010, which entered into force on January 1, 2012. With the adoption of this Agreement the procedure for obtaining a work permit was excluded, which Member States  previously established in order to protect the domestic labour market. The free movement of labour force  implies the free movement of individuals within the Eurasian Economic Space and the creation of harmonized migration policy in relation to third countries in accordance with the norms and principles of international law and the WTO; The Agreement have been enabling  to resolve the following issues: a/ Ensuring the equal rights of citizens of the Member States of the Agreement; b/ Decreasing  of illegal migration flows; c/ Deepening of social-economic cooperation of Member States".

Mr. Yerzhan Ashikbayev, the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan,  underlined that  "On May 29, 2014, in Astana during the meeting of the High Eurasian Economic Council at the level of Heads of State an Agreement  on "Eurasian Economic Union" will be signed, where the free labour movement and labour issues of citizens of the Member States are reflected in section XXVI «Labor Migration».  With this Agreement the EEC is setting up the right of employers (entities)  of the one Member State  to engage labour force from another Member State without restrictions linked with the protection of the labour market of the Member States of EEC. At the same time labour force from one Member State do not need labour permit for conducting labour activity in another Member State".

Migration and development are highly interdependent processes. Development is a dynamic process implying growth, advancement, empowerment and progress, with the goal of increasing human capabilities, enlarging the scope of human choices, and creating a safe and secure environment where citizens can live with dignity and equality. In the development process, it is important that people’s productivity, creativity and choices are broadened, and that opportunities are created. Maximizing the positive relationship between migration and development has long been a focus of IOM’s work.

Ambassador William Lacy Swing, Director-General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), in his “Person of the Month” (March 2014) interview for the G-Global Info Communicative Platform of the Astana Economic Forum emphasized: “If the Customs’ Union have the effect of bringing people from different countries closer, and into better dialogue, the impact for all can be very positive. From a migration and development perspective, both member states and migrants benefit from Customs’ Union, if these lead to well-governed migration that protects the rights of migrants and the respect for the sovereign rights of States”.

Migration and development is a key priority in Central Asia, and neighbouring countries, especially given the large scale of labour mobility in the region. Recognising the need for both high and lower-skilled workers, the issue of orderly managed migration, in particular labour migration, is increasingly important in the Central Asian region. It is an important theme for further policy discussion in the framework of the Customs Union because the Customs Union provides certain liberties in terms of human mobility therefore allowing migrant workers opportunities within its vast geographical territory. This discussion involves international and national stakeholders, and public and private partners.

Ms. Renate Held, Regional Director for South-Eastern Europe, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, International Organization for Migration (IOM) highlighted the growing recognition of the importance of migration to all countries in the world and for a variety of stakeholders “ migration affects economies, cultures and societies; it matters to governments, businesses, families and individuals.  Migration matters today more than ever before and its significance is set to increase further”.