KHUJAND, January 30, 2009, Asia-Plus-- The ongoing financial crisis has affected the process of implementation of the Russian national program for voluntary resettlement of fellow-countrymen to Russia in Tajikistan.

Speaking in an interview with Asia-Plus, Andrey Kopylov, counselor with the Russian General Consulate in Khujand, said the finance crisis had forced them to amend their plans on the program for voluntary resettlement of fellow-countrymen from Tajikistan.

“59 other regions of Russia were supposed to join the program this year in addition to 12 regions participating in the resettlement program, however, this has not occurred,” Kopylov said, adding that the number of quotas for migrants has been reduced as well.

“For example, quotas provided by the Kaliningrad region this year has been reduced three times compared to 2008 and this is connected with the financial crisis,” Russian diplomat said.

He added that teachers and physicians remained the most called-for categories.  In 2008, 36 families, totaling 100 people, left Tajikistan for Russia; ethnic Tajiks constituted some 65 percent of them.