Informality versus shadow economy: reflecting on the first results of a manager’s survey in Kyrgyzstan

Abel Polese, Gian Marco Moisé, Talshyn Tokyzhanova, Tommaso Aguzzi, Tanel Kerikmäe, Ainoura Sagynbaeva, Arnis Sauka and Oleksandra Seliverstova

Central Asian Survey, 2023, vol. 42, issue 1, 149-170

Abstract: This article is the first attempt to apply Putnis and Sauka's approach to direct measurement of the shadow economy through a survey of company managers in Central Asia. The results of the survey are used to calculate a shadow economy index for 2017 and 2018 in Kyrgyzstan, and to discuss the difference between direct and indirect methods in calculating the size of a shadow economy. We also propose a distinction between shadow economies and informality in general. While a shadow economy is usually understood to arise as a consequence of underreporting of income, we argue that informality is best understood as the aggregate of non-monetary and non-economic practices used in society. Applying this distinction to our case, we suggest that the origins of Kyrgyzstan's shadow economy are not only economic; rather social and cultural processes have had significant effects. This has implications for policy responses that address shadow economic activities.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1080/02634937.2022.2093328

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