Kazakhstan's Looser Migrant Worker Rules Will Aggravate Tensions

The Kazakh government is set to relax regulations for migrant workers in the country. According to the World Bank, Kazakhstan is the ninth-largest immigration destination in the world and the seventh-largest source of emigrants. Migration into Kazakhstan will likely increase in the next few years due to migration restrictions in Russia and skyrocketing populations in Central Asia. Increased flows of foreign workers will strain the Kazakh economy and could preclude some Kazakhs from competing with cheaper foreign labor. It will also increase animosity among the country's various ethnic groups at a time when ethnic tensions are already high in the region.