The stability of labor markets in Central Asia depend on the state of Russia's economy, Representative of the North American Office at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Bart Edes told Sputnik
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th May, 2019) The stability of labor markets in Central Asia depend on the state of Russia's economy, Representative of the North American Office at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Bart Edes told Sputnik.
"Many countries that are near Russia - like Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, the Caucasus - these are all member countries of ADB and they have close economic relations with Russia, so if the Russian economy is slowing and not growing fast this has an impact on their economies so they look to ADB for support," Edes said on Wednesday.
Although Russia is not a member of the ADB, it trades often with developing countries the bank supports with loans, grants and technical assistance.
"Also, there are a lot of migrant workers coming from Central Asia to work in Russia. If the economy is not doing good in Russia they'll be coming back home and that puts stress on the labor market," Edes said.
Edes said ADB does not have any projects with Russia or any talks with Russia about any potential projects.
Edes spoke at the "Doing Business with the BRICS" Conference organized by the Eurasia Center and the Eurasian Business Coalition.
The seventh annual conference brought together various experts and officials from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa seeking to expand trade, direct investments and business opportunities, as well as open communication.
