Labour productivity has large regional variations. For example, between the northern wheat region where labour shortages are reported and the southern cotton region where harvesting is largely done by low-wage migrants from Uzbekistan. Yields per hectare do not show a clear pattern, potato and vegetable yields have improved substantially after declining in the 1990s, while grain and sugar beet yields are volatile (Figure 1.13). On an international scale, Kazakhstan’s yields of key crops are relatively low (Figure 1.14, panels A and B). The three northern oblasts (North Kazakhstan, Kostanay and Akmola) specialise in grain, producing much of the country’s farm output by value (Figure 1.16). The eastern oblasts (Pavlodar, East Kazakhstan and Almaty) produce most of the oilseeds.