HOMELAND INTEGRATION: ASSESSING THE EXPERIENCES OF REPATRIATES (QANDAS) IN KAZAKHSTAN AND STATE POLICIES ASSOCIATED WITH THEM

Abstract

Kazakhstan began repatriation policies after independence as part of its national identity and demographic policy. The repatriation process consists of migration and integration. Integration, in turn, means sustainable mutual interaction between returnees and their homeland society. However, according to the Migration Policy Concept of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2017-2021 and previous studies, returnees experience certain difficulties in integrating into the local society. Although there have been no studies measuring the level of integration of returnees on the part of the state and in academia. Moreover, there has been no monitoring evaluation of the effectiveness of integration policies after the completion of Concept 2017-2021, where many measures were related to the integration of returnees. Thus, this study attempted to measure the integration index of returnees compared to the local population. It also attempted to identify existing barriers faced by returnees in the process of smooth integration and to assess the result of the Concept. The study showed that the integration index of returnees was significantly lower than that of locals. Gaps in repatriation policy institutions and lack of coordination between them, which reinforce these barriers and the primordial approach of integration policy were also identified.