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New Human Development Report urges governments to correctly manage migration

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"Migration played a crucial role in improving the living standards of the Moldovan citizens and this fact cannot be denied," Kaarina Immonen, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Permanent Representative in Moldova, said at a conference held to present the Human Development Report 2009.

According to the quoted source, practically each third family in Moldova received and continues to receive money from relatives working abroad. For a large part of them, remittances are the major source of income. Yearly remittances per capita amount to US$395. This is one of the highest figures in the countries of the region.

She also said that the human and social costs of migration should not be neglected. About 50% of the persons who go abroad to work divorce during the first five years after departure, the children remain without supervision and abandon school, the youth crime rate is increasing.

Luisa Vinton, senior program coordinator at the UNDP Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS, said the report analyzes migration, cleans it off rumors and mystification and suggests correctly managing migration to governments. According to the expert, the people should be widely informed about the work opportunities existing in other countries by opening the existent entry channels for workers, including unskilled, identifying solutions to establish cooperation relations between the destination community and migrants, signing agreements on the protection of migrants with countries that accept more migrants.

The report says the remittances received by the developing countries, including Moldova, are four times larger than the assistance provided by international financial organizations and foreign donors.

Remittances contribute to development, but cannot substitute governments' programs and efforts aimed at improving living standards and implementing economic reforms.

Minister of Labor, Social Protection and Family Valentina Buliga said the new Government of Moldova realizes this fact and started to work out measures aimed at economic recovery and at overcoming the consequences of the crisis. She said that the policies will center on the provision of employment opportunities, mainly in rural areas, including for the migrants who will return home, improvement of the business climate and creation of conditions for investing remittances.

Other objectives, according to the minister, include extending the legal migration scheme, improvement the services provided for migrants, including consular services, strengthening the communities of migrants and engaging them in the implementation of development programs in their native settlements.