Internal migration in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia): variations across economic zones in 2006–2023

Abstract The Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) faces serious demographic challenges. One of the most important among them is the imbalance of population flows within internal migration. This paper examines the patterns of internal migration in the Republic, based on the distribution of municipal districts (uluses) by economic zones designated by the authorities for administrative purposes. The six most common indices characterising the intensity of migration of the population were used for the analysis. The homogeneity of Yakutia’s districts according to these indices was tested using the van der Waerden test. The article reveals that the intensity of migration in Yakutia has increased since 2011. The financial crisis of 2008–2009 and the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant but temporary impact on internal migration in Yakutia. Only Yakutsk has experienced population growth due to internal migration throughout the period studied. The intensity of migration in the Arctic uluses was not statistically different from central and eastern uluses, but differed from the most economically developed districts in southern and western Yakutia. The Republic was homogeneous with respect to the balance of migration inflows and outflows, but there was considerable heterogeneity in terms of the impact of migration on the size of the population.