Internal and International Migration of Population in Bulgaria

The article traces the main trends and stages of the internal migration processes between 1956 – 2001 on the bases of the last five censuses in the country. The intensity of the internal migration particularly high in the 1956 – 1965 period (18,6 percent of the average annual population) dropped to 5,1 percent in the 1992 – 2001). The socio-demographic characteristics of the migrants are in the scope of the study. The number of migrants, as well as the structures and intensity of migration for different categories of the population are presented. The great internal mobility of the population in the 1956 – 1985 has evolved into a high intensity of the international migration during the years after 1989. Emigration has very essential and direct aftereffect on the population and the labor force. The major part of the emigrating population is of the age 20 – 35 and of higher educational and qualification standards. Some basic problems of provision statistical information on international migration are presented in the paper. Based on different sources, estimation of the coverage and characteristic of migration process during last decade of the 20th century is done. International migration of population in Bulgaria became crucial for the demographic development of the country and its labour potential and this requires profound research of the process in the future.