In the first quarter of 2024, the volume of remittances to Uzbekistan increased, as stated by the chairperson of the Central Bank (CBU) Mamarizo Nurmuratov during a press conference on April 25, according to Gazeta.uz correspondent.
Remittances increased by 8.6%, rising from $2.3 billion to $2.5 billion, according to the CBU’s head. This surpasses figures from the first quarters of 2022 ($1.46 billion) and 2021 ($1.41 billion). “The share of Russia and Kazakhstan decreased down to 84%. The share of Russia decreased more significantly to 68%,” he shared.
Russia’s share in remittances declined from 87% in 2022 to 78% in 2023.
Between 2019 and 2021, remittances from Russia accounted for only about half of the total remittances to Uzbekistan.
At the end of last year, the World Bank noted a gradual decline in the volume of remittances from Russia to Uzbekistan. Factors included a decrease in the number of Uzbekistan’s labor migrants in Russia, strengthening of the exchange rate of the Uzbek soum (UZS) against the Russian ruble (RUB), as well as rising inflation in Russia.
Earlier, CBU highlighted geographical diversification in labor migration with a decreasing share of remittances from Russia.
In January, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev directed the organization of training for approximately 100,000 citizens for employment abroad through organized recruitment. Later, the Agency for External Labor Migration announced the recruitment of 50,000 individuals for positions in Germany, South Korea, and other countries. Additionally, new initiatives aimed at supporting and training labor migrants are being introduced.
