Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Chairman of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan Tanzila Narbaeva, while on a working visit in Geneva, met with Director General of the International Labor Organization (ILO) Guy Ryder and the Secretary General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) António Vitorino.

ILO Director General Guy Ryder, congratulating Uzbekistan on its election to the UN Human Rights Council for 2021-2023, noted that this is the result of the tremendous work done to ensure human rights, including the eradication of child and forced labor, and the effective implementation of the ILO conventions.

The sides raised the issue of the impact of coronavirus infection on the economies of countries. Guy Ryder noted that the labor market of all states has suffered. Rising unemployment and poverty amid the pandemic have become a serious problem even in the most developed countries.

“The decisive measures of the President of Uzbekistan, his enormous efforts to timely respond, consistently implement effective tasks, as well as the dynamics and coverage of reforms over the past 3 years, mitigated the consequences of the negative impact of the coronavirus on society and the economy,” the ILO Director General stressed. - Economic and social support allowed the republic not only to fight the coronavirus, but also with its negative consequences on business and the income level of the population. The measures taken by Uzbekistan to mitigate the effects of the pandemic on the economy and the labor market are in line with the ILO’s policy on combating the consequences of COVID-19.

According to Guy Ryder, the initiative of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to adopt, under the auspices of the UN, the International Code of Voluntary Obligations of States during a Pandemic is of interest to the world community. The ILO is ready to provide expert assistance in considering the draft document. Moreover, for the recovery of labor markets in the post-crisis period, this can be an effective solution in stabilizing the situation with unemployment and loss of workers’ income.

Guy Ryder expressed gratitude to the Uzbek side for conducting a joint study on the impact of COVID-19 on the labor market and social protection, which made it possible to identify the most vulnerable groups of the population and formulate measures for their targeted support. Thus, with the assistance of the ILO, the functionality of the work of the Employment Promotion Centers is being revised, and the functional analysis of the Public Works Fund is being completed.

The progress made by Uzbekistan on forced and child labor issues in the cotton harvest and beyond was noted. As the Director General of the ILO emphasized, in Uzbekistan it has been possible to achieve the fact that systematic forced and child labor is now recognized as unacceptable and not used. And the measures taken at the legislative level should contribute to their complete eradication. Among them - an increase in fines and the introduction of criminal liability for violations in this direction.

Speaking about the prospects for cooperation, Guy Ryder noted the ILO’s readiness to assist in the implementation of Uzbekistan’s initiatives in the field of creating decent and high-quality jobs for inclusive economic growth, improving the quality of the workforce and its mobility in the post-crisis period, strengthening social dialogue by including them in new Country Cooperation Program of Uzbekistan and the ILO for 2021-2025.

On the same day, the head of the upper house of parliament Tanzila Narbaeva met with the IOM Secretary General António Vitorino, who underlined the large-scale reforms carried out in the country in recent years aimed at protecting the rights and improving the living conditions of labor migrants abroad.

“IOM is closely following the changes taking place in Uzbekistan to protect socially vulnerable layers of the country’s population, to streamline labor migration,” António Vitorino noted. - I have carefully studied the results of the video conference held on August 17 under the leadership of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, dedicated to the creation of decent conditions for workers abroad, and fully support the decisions made in it.

The head of the IOM also highly appreciated the decision of the Uzbek side to create a humanitarian corridor for the return to their homeland of 250 Tajik citizens who have found themselves in a difficult situation on the border between Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan due to the quarantine and restrictive measures taken in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic.

In turn, IOM is ready to continue to assist in the implementation of joint projects, including in the implementation in Uzbekistan of 1 national and 4 regional IOM projects totaling over US$1 million.

Noting the socio-economic potential of Uzbekistan, António Vitorino reported on the decision taken by the Organization to increase the number of employees in its country office and to open a full-fledged Representative Office in Tashkent.

During the meeting, a bilateral Cooperation Agreement was signed between the Government of Uzbekistan and the IOM.

The IOM Secretary General invited the head of the upper chamber of the Uzbek parliament, Tanzila Narbaeva, to act as the main guest at a joint event between the IOM and the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), which will be held on 15-16 November 2020 via video conference.

As a result of the meeting, an agreement was reached on further intensifying interaction on issues of mutual interest and expanding contacts between the IOM and the relevant departments of Uzbekistan.