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Are Uzbeks Better Off? Economic Welfare and Ethnicity in Kyrgyzstan

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  • Steiner, Susan
  • Esenaliev, Damir

Abstract

In the light of violent clashes between Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbeks in Kyrgyzstan in June 2010 we investigate the association between economic welfare and ethnicity in this country. We intend to answer two questions. First, are Uzbek households better off than Kyrgyz households, as is often claimed in the media and also by some academics? Second, what are the correlates of household welfare in recent years, and how have these changed in comparison with the 1990s? We use data from two cross-sections of the Kyrgyz Integrated Household Survey (2003 and 2005) and run OLS regressions using three measures of welfare, i.e. per capita consumption, per capita income, and an asset index. We find some evidence for higher welfare of Uzbek headed households compared with their Kyrgyz counterparts, but mainly in rural areas. In the south of the country, where most Uzbeks live and where the violence took place, there appears to be no substantial difference in welfare. This is clearly in contrast to what was commonly propagated in the media and what most Kyrgyz tend to think. In terms of the other correlates of welfare, we find that household size, educational attainment of adults, and residence outside the capital and the neighbouring Chui oblast are most importantly connected with welfare. This coincides with findings from earlier studies using data from a decade earlier.

Suggested Citation

  • Steiner, Susan & Esenaliev, Damir, 2011. "Are Uzbeks Better Off? Economic Welfare and Ethnicity in Kyrgyzstan," Proceedings of the German Development Economics Conference, Berlin 2011 75, Verein für Socialpolitik, Research Committee Development Economics.
  • Handle: RePEc:zbw:gdec11:75
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Elmira Satybaldieva, 2015. "Political Capital, Everyday Politics and Moral Obligations: Understanding the Political Strategies of Various Elites and the Poor in Kyrgyzstan," Europe-Asia Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 67(3), pages 370-387, March.
    2. Damir Esenaliev & Antje Kröger & Susan Steiner, 2011. "The Kyrgyz Integrated Household Survey (KIHS): A Primer," Data Documentation 62, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    3. Kimsanova, Barchynai & Sanaev, Golib & Herzfeld, Thomas, 2022. "Dynamics of food consumption during political instability: evidence from Kyrgyzstan," 96th Annual Conference, April 4-6, 2022, K U Leuven, Belgium 321213, Agricultural Economics Society - AES.
    4. Kroeger, Antje & Anderson, Kathryn H., 2014. "Remittances and the human capital of children: New evidence from Kyrgyzstan during revolution and financial crisis, 2005–2009," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(3), pages 770-785.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Household welfare; ethnicity; Kyrgyzstan;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D74 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Conflict; Conflict Resolution; Alliances; Revolutions
    • P36 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist Institutions and Their Transitions - - - Consumer Economics; Health; Education and Training; Welfare, Income, Wealth, and Poverty
    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis

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