Economic and spatial determinants of interregional migration in Kazakhstan

Alisher Aldashev and Barbara Dietz

Economic Systems, 2014, vol. 38, issue 3, 379-396

Abstract: In this paper we analyze economic and spatial determinants of interregional migration in Kazakhstan using quarterly panel data on region to region migration in 2008–2010. The main contribution of the paper relates to the ethnic divide in Kazakhstan, which is the home of a big ethnic Russian community, adding to the scarce literature on ethnic differences in migration patterns. Against this background we investigate whether the determinants of interregional mobility depend on ethnicity. In line with traditional economic theory we find that migration is determined by economic factors, first of all wage. As predicted by gravity arguments, mobility is larger between more populated regions and distance has a strong negative impact on migration, indicating high migration-related costs. Most likely caused by stronger family ties and kinship bonds, the deterring effect of distance is higher for ethnic Kazakhs.

Keywords: Interregional migration; Kazakhstan; Gravity model (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J61 P36 R23 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (12)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Economic and Spatial Determinants of Interregional Migration in Kazakhstan (2012)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecosys:v:38:y:2014:i:3:p:379-396

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecosys.2013.10.004

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