The Belgorod region has become the leader in Russia in terms of population flight due to shelling in Ukraine
By The Moscow Times Russian Service www.moscowtimes.ru2 min
May 16, 2024
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During two years of war, the Belgorod region, bordering Ukraine, turned from the leading Russian region in terms of population influx into the leader in its flight.

Before the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the region annually attracted about 50 thousand new residents and in terms of migration growth - the ratio of those who arrived and left - in terms of a thousand people in 2019-2021, it was even ahead of Moscow, writes Vestka, citing Rosstat data.

However, in 2022–2023, the region became the leader in population outflow. Already in the first year of the war, Rosstat recorded that 11 thousand more people left the region than arrived. And in 2023, the number of people leaving the region was 27% higher than in pre-war 2021. At the same time, only those who deregistered are included in official statistics.

Last year, people left the region in evacuation mode. Thus, in the border Grayvoronsky district, out of 26 thousand residents, only 1.5 thousand remained. Also, according to Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, 3.5 thousand children and about a thousand adults were transported to temporary accommodation centers in other regions.

The regional center, the city of Belgorod, also seems to have “died out,” although most of its residents have not left, says local businessman Dmitry. “I’m now in the center of Belgorod. The alley, where couples used to walk, ride scooters and bicycles, is empty. There are four times fewer people on the streets,” he says.

It is the departure of the population that interviewed entrepreneurs call the most destructive consequence of the shelling - they lose both clients and workers.

According to the Federal Tax Service, the number of employees in small businesses in the Belgorod region decreased to 63.7 thousand people by April 2024. This is two thousand fewer people than in 2021, but due to the prevalence of informal employment in small businesses and the service sector, not all layoffs are taken into account by the tax authorities.

After the start of the war, the Belgorod region was the most affected by shelling from Ukraine. From 2023, their number reaches 300–400 per month. This is approximately 10 times more than in neighboring border regions. This situation is due to the fact that Belgorod and Shebekino are located closest to the Russian-Ukrainian border.

From the beginning of the war to the end of April 2024, 141 people died from shelling in the Belgorod region, Fonar.tv calculated . According to local authorities, more than five thousand apartments and private houses were damaged by shelling in Belgorod, and more than seven thousand in border areas.