Negative Impact of Labour Migration on Tajik Families

Nearly half of Tajikistan’s GDP comes from the earnings of Tajik migrant workers, many of whom travel to take up employment in Kazakhstan and Russia and send money back home.

Their families are provided for, but a recent report by UNICEF highlighted psychological consequences for children growing up with fathers who are largely absent. A third of migrant families interviewed for the report describe the overall impact as “negative,” and almost the same amount are “neutral,” with just over a third “very positive” or “positive”. Boys tend to become more aggressive, while girls become depressed, it found, with knock-on effects on their schoolwork.