Sardinia Is Short Of Shepherds: They Will Be Brought From Kyrgyzstan

The Italian island of Sardinia, which today is one of the top Italian and international tourism destinations, has a historically agricultural economy based on the raising of sheep and other livestock. Pecorino cheese, for example, is a product with a protected name and place of origin that is recognized throughout the world. It’s a pity that shepherds have almost completely disappeared in Sardinia. This happened possibly because it is easier and more profitable to move to the coast and work in the tourism sector, possibly because the birth rate has fallen sharply, especially in the cities of the island’s interior parts, but the fact remains that some areas are at risk of simply being depopulated, while herds would be left without their shepherds.

But it seems that a solution was found. There is hope for the emergence of those who will save the herds and agri-food traditions of Sardinia. This will be done by peasants from distant Kyrgyzstan, as reported by the Italian Association of Agricultural Entrepreneurs Coldiretti, which explained that “young Kyrgyz shepherds who understand agriculture will soon begin to arrive on the island with their families.”

This is the result of an agreement signed with the Ministry of Labor of Kyrgyzstan. The implementation of the pilot project has already begun and provides for the arrival in Sardinia of about a hundred Kyrgyz shepherds aged 18 to 45 years with confirmed high qualifications, who will be integrated into the economic and social structure of Sardinia. Various opportunities are also provided for their wives in activities to help their families.

“This is a medium-term project that will lead to the integration, through cultural mediators, of thousands of foreigners, depending on demand, in three rural areas of the island: Sassari, Barbagia, and Sarrabus,” Coldiretti said in a statement. “Kyrgyzstan has a strong livestock industry with a deep knowledge of dairying and a system of widespread transfer of accumulated experience, especially in the production of cheese from sheep’s milk, as well as in horse breeding.”
This integration project, developed with the assistance of Taalai Bazarbayev, the Ambassador of Kyrgyzstan to Italy, and with the support of the Italian Ministries of Agriculture and Foreign Affairs, provides for the introduction of apprenticeship and then permanent contracts, and for families arriving from Central Asia, the possibility of settling in numerous empty houses in small towns in the Sardinian hinterland. The net salary of workers in this sector in Italy ranges from 1,000 to 1,400 euros per month, while in Kyrgyzstan the average salary is around 150 euros.

“Legal immigration is a value for a country like Italy,” Coldiretti noted, “where one in four agricultural products is manufactured by foreign hands. Currently, 358,000 permanent workers from 164 countries work full-time in fields, farms, and stables, providing more than 30% of the total number of working days needed in the agricultural sector, according to the agency Idos Dossier. Foreign workers employed in agriculture are mainly from Romania, Morocco, India, and Albania, but there are representatives of almost all nationalities.”