Regional migration report : South Caucasus

Abstract

Human mobility in the South Caucasus is a dynamic phenomenon that has been changing social, economic and even political realities there. The three countries considered in the present report, namely, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, have been through very different post-communist transitions, which have influenced the conditions for short- and long-term migration to, from and across their territories. South Caucasus is a region of relatively high instability with frozen conflicts and constant geopolitical struggles. Each political decision naturally influences migration dynamics: the volume, the character and, of course, the direction. The present report testifies to this ever changing reality and offers a solid basis for understanding its dynamics. It gathers the fruits of over two years work carried out by the CARIM-East network of correspondents. We propose a collection of informative chapters on various migration topics, developed from three perspectives: demographic, legal and socio-political. We can only hope that it will help the reader to understand the impact of migration and mobility in the region.