The Impact of Ukraine’s Informal Economy on Women: Mobilizing Canada’s Diaspora for Growth and Opportunity During Crisis

Abstract

Ukraine’s crisis has dramatically affected the economy of the country. The ongoing conflict, loss of territories and internal and external migration have all resulted in a 30% increase in unemployment coupled with a large informal economy. With male migration to EU states and an expansion in the predominantly male military, Ukrainian women have become a crucial part of the informal economy, dependent on remittances from Canada and elsewhere, but also present in informal activities previously dominated by men. With labour migration to Canada and elsewhere we ask how have diaspora connections influenced gender dynamics and how in turn do these dynamics reshape diaspora remittance strategies, investment and household consumption in Ukraine? We focus on an expanded interpretation of the informal economy, that includes the foreign activities of labour migrants, remittance flows, household work and other labour roles, including traditionally unpaid or self-employed work, performed by women. We find that, since the 2014 crisis, there have been significant changes in the way in which Canada and like-minded countries address economic weakness that, on the one hand, help offset hardship at the community and household level, but, on the other hand, do not directly address long-term fragility and perpetuate a cycle of dependency. This trend is likely to continue as long as Ukraine’s economic performance remains fragile and without necessary diasporic coordination in favour of durable social, human and physical capital investment.

The authors would like to thank SSHRCC for its support in this research.