Regional Analysis of State Policy on Ecomigration: The Case of Ajara

Abstract

The paper presents a regional-level analysis of the state policy on ecomigration using the example of Adjara. Both the historical context of the state policy on ecomigration and the goals and strategy of the state policy on ecomigration in the modern period are examined.The research results indicate that, using the example of the Adjara region, the institutional development of the state policy on ecomigration has gone through different stages.
At the modern stage, the government has developed relevant policies in the direction of ecomigration processes; however, the research showed that it is necessary for the state to form a systematic strategy towards ecomigration and resettlement. The research showed that the interests of families displaced from the Adjara region as a result of natural disasters were either poorly considered or not considered at all when selecting the place of residence.
They were mainly settled in local communities in mixed settlements, where there were different cultural, economic, and living conditions for them. From the point of view of integration and adaptation, it was further complicated by the fact that the ecomigrants displaced from the Adjara region had a different historical religious heritage. Considering this reality, adapting and integrating with the local environment was hindered. Migration processes that disregard the cultural, every day, and economic characteristics of a particular group are difficult to manage in terms of intercultural relations.
To this was added the fact that the state did not conduct appropriate preliminary communication activities with the families to be resettled, as a result of which they had a serious information deficit about the situation in the settlement areas and were unable to realize what kind of new reality they would have to live in.
This significantly hindered the adaptation process after resettlement, which in turn became a stimulating factor for remigration processes and conflict situations with local communities – and there are many examples of this even today.