Arif Veliyev, the Chairman of the State Statistics Committee, stated to a news conference on January 25th that according to official data, Azerbaijanis currently residing in Russia amount to 470,000, Trend reports. The basis for this data was obtained by a general census held in Russia in 2002.
However, unofficial data suggests their number comprises 2.5-3mln people. According to research by the International Labor Organization, every family in Azerbaijan receives $137 a month from these people.
Mr. Veliyev noted while calculating the country's total income, this revenue was taken into account in the sum of $150, considering that some 70,000 of the 470,000 people do not send money home. The Gross National Income includes revenue from 400,000 people.
With the consideration of these citizens, as of 1st January 2007 the population of Azerbaijan constituted 8,533mln people; 1.13% (96,000 people) more than 2005, he stated.