Pandemic and Governance in Central Asia

With the decline in trade VAT which constitutes about 33.6 per cent of the tax revenues of the Central Asian states saw a sharp decline.9 The impact of the slowing of business due to the lockdown was not the same in all sectors of the economy. [...] According to data from the Ministry of Social Protection, about eight million people applied for online transfers, a clear indication of the unemployment rates in the country as fallout of the lockdown.10 In Uzbekistan, the pandemic was followed by the collapse of a newly built Sardoba dam affecting citizens on both the Uzbek and the Kazakh sides. [...] Volunteers delivered food and medication and supported those who had lost their income and there was an acknowledgement of the fact that the traditional healthcare system had been unable to care for everyone.14 While this meant that there was disaffection with the system throughout the region, in Kyrgyzstan, the crisis led to the removal of the President and the emergence of a populist leader. [...] During the pandemic, the first to be affected was the financial market resulting in fluctuations in the value of the Kyrgyz Som, which resulted not just from the panic created in the international community by the health crisis but also due to the fall in oil prices. [...] The lack of coordination between the Ministries of Health, Economy and the Ministry of Labour and Social Development meant a lack of meaningful support for the migrants and their families in Kyrgyzstan.27 Pandemic in a Migrant Society Lack of employment opportunities across the states drives the large numbers of migrants who seek seasonal employment in Russia and Kazakhstan.