40% of Albania's workforce works abroad - Report: Country is also transit for Afghans, Syrians and Pakistanis
Around 40% of Albania's workforce works abroad, according to the latest report by the International Organization for Migration, which highlights that due to the lack of better employment opportunities or higher-paying jobs, many people have left the Eastern and Southeastern European subregion, often to work in Western and Northern Europe.
According to the report, Albania and Moldova are two of the countries hardest hit. Around 40% of Albania's workforce is estimated to be working abroad, contributing to the brain drain phenomenon and putting pressure on domestic industries and economies that are constantly losing workers, both in low-skilled sectors and in sectors that need highly skilled workers. High poverty rates, wage gaps between Albania and other countries in the region, significant corruption and cronyism, among other factors, influence people's decisions to leave the country.
While many people leaving Eastern and Southeastern Europe are regular migrants who end up working in Russia or in countries within Western and Northern Europe, there has also been a rise in the number of irregular migrants from several countries in the subregion. The report highlights that thousands of young Albanians, for example, have made arduous journeys to reach Northern Europe, particularly the United Kingdom, where many risk their lives crossing the English Channel in small boats or dinghies.
Irregular migration from and through South-Eastern and Eastern Europe remains a challenge in its own right. Often aided by smugglers, the sub-region is a major transit area and is characterised by mixed migration flows, particularly for migrants trying to reach Western and Northern Europe. Irregular arrivals to the European Union via the Western Balkans, mainly via countries such as Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, have seen a surge in arrivals since 2018. The three largest nationalities coming to the Balkans to then go to Western European countries are Afghans, Syrians and Pakistanis.
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