Why Many Ukrainians Choose to Leave Ukraine?

The population of Ukraine is about 43 million. However, this population has been declining continuously since the 1990s. In fact, it hit the peak of 53 million people in the year 1990. The yearly population growth rate has constantly been negative since 1992 and currently stands at -0.59%. In 2020 alone its population decreased by 260,000 people. Low fertility rate and high immigration rate are the two important reasons for population decline.

Ukrainians are leaving their country at a record rate In a survey in 2015, 55% of the Ukrainians named mass emigration as the greatest threat to Ukraine. According to estimates by the United Nations, Ukraine could lose one-fifth of its population by 2050. There are over one million people of Ukrainian heritage in us and Ukrainians makeup around 3.9% of the Canadian population. This graph shows the countries worldwide with the most number of Ukrainians or people with Ukrainian heritage.

The young working professionals are leaving the country in huge numbers. It is estimated that one out of every 15 Ukrainian citizens works abroad at any given time. The economic migration of Ukrainians to other countries is massive and is increasing every year. This phenomenon has serious consequences for the already struggling economy of Ukraine. To make things worse, it's the youthful and most productive portion of the population of Ukraine that’s leaving the country in the largest proportion. This mass migration of people is “one of the biggest threats Ukraine has faced after Russia's military offensive. What is happening in Ukraine? And why do so many Ukrainians emigrate to other countries?

Most of us know Ukraine because of Chernobyl. Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe and is the second-largest country by area in Europe after Russia. Ukraine is one of the world's largest grain exporters, due to its vast and fertile farmland. That said, Ukraine is among the poorest countries in Europe, and corruption is rampant in the country. Ukraine's average wealth per adult in 2018 was $40, one of the lowest in the world. In 2016, the average monthly salary in Ukraine was $200 per month.

3.8 million Ukrainians have left the country in the last ten years. Also, nine million Ukrainians also work abroad regularly for part of the year. The war in eastern Ukraine has definitely fueled the mass migration but it's not the main reason why people are leaving. The basic infrastructure of the country is very weak. Ukraine has a terrible healthcare system, poor wages, and an abysmal education system. Add corruption and poor standards of living to the mix and it makes Ukraine one of the worst countries in Europe to live in.

ukranian diaspora map, wikipedia

Most Ukrainians just want to get out. The young population does not want to waste their talent in a country with no potential. Ukrainians choose to migrate to wealthier western countries with better wages and better living conditions. Since Ukraine is located in Europe and borders the European Union., its citizens face far fewer difficulties immigrating to EU countries compared to citizens of other third world nations. In fact, Ukrainian citizens form the largest reservoir of migrant labor in the European Union. In 2020, citizens of Ukraine received the highest number of first residence permits issued by the EU which were distributed among 601.000 beneficiaries.

The Ukrainians living and working abroad send home a significant portion of their income. Remittances from overseas make up more than 11 percent of Ukraine’s GDP. The destination where most Ukrainians migrate is Poland. Take a look at this graph. It shows that more than 300k Ukrainians have permanently moved to Poland in the last 6 years alone. 60% of the Ukrainian immigrants are between the ages of 19-40. The marked intensification of immigration to Ukraine since 2014 is noteworthy, and this is largely related to the willingness to work.

The reason for moving to Poland is quite simple. Poland itself is dealing with an immigration crisis and thus there is a huge labor shortage. Poland joined the EU in 2004 and since its a member state, its citizens can freely live and work in any of the EU countries without any restrictions. Millions of poles leave Poland to seek a better life, higher standards of living, and better wages in western countries like Germany. To fill the gap in the labor market, the Polish government has introduced a visa-free regime and easier access to the Polish labor market for Ukrainian workers.

The GDP per capita of Ukraine is 8800 dollars whereas the GDP per capita of Poland is 29,600 dollars. Poland offers everything Ukraine doesn’t have. Better wages, better infrastructure, and better healthcare. For example, a trucker in Ukraine earns around 400 euros per month whereas in Poland the same trucker would earn around 2k euros every month. That’s roughly 5 times more. Ukrainians are culturally very close to the poles and the two languages are very similar so there are not a lot of barriers faced by Ukrainian immigrants.

ukraine and poland per capita income comparison, reddit

Despite the fact that the salaries Ukrainian migrants earn in Poland are small compared to countries in the west of the EU, the low living costs allow for regular and relatively high remittances to Ukraine. Poland is very wary of multiculturalism and it has not taken any Muslim refugees under the EU’s relocation scheme. Taking in immigrants from Ukraine gives Poland an excuse for not taking refugees from elsewhere. The government has often referred to the burden of helping Ukrainian migrants to be exempted from the obligation to accept refugees from the Middle East and North Africa.

But the immigrants from Ukraine aren’t refugees fleeing war. Rather, they are immigrants seeking opportunities and a better life in Poland. Back in Ukraine, businesses are struggling due to a lack of labor. The migration of people is hurting Ukraine's already struggling economy by forcing businesses in Ukraine to close. The business owners have no other option but to leave Ukraine themselves in search of livable money. Ukrainians are willing to move to any western country that opens its doors for them and Poland has established a kind of open borders policy with the citizens of Ukraine. It is a win-win situation.

The Ukrainian government has started to take some initial steps to combat the country's demographic freefall. In December, Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelensky launched a program offering loans to Ukrainians living abroad to return home and set up businesses there. The Ukrainian emigration rates are estimated to only grow with time without any sign of slowing down. Ukrainians have no better choice than to leave the country. I mean no one wants to live in a country with poor wages, lack of the most basic healthcare, an awfully terrible education system, and under a constant threat of war.