According to State Statistics Service data, over the past 12 years Ukraine has been experiencing migration population growth – over the said period 230,000 more people entered the country as compared to those who left. At the same time, according to UN statistics, Ukraine is among the top ten countries with the highest emigration levels and the numbers have increased in recent years. State Statistics Service estimates the number of migrant workers at 1.3 million, while experts say the number varies between 2 and 4 million. The discrepancies emerge both because of different understanding of what “migrant” means and different data collection methods.
A poor understanding of the “mathematical component” leads to confusion and speculation. Thus, for instance, many politicians claim that in recent years between 5 and 8 million Ukrainians left the country trying to get away from poverty and unemployment.
