Uzbekistan, ILO Deepen Labor Reform Ties at Geneva Summit

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Senate Chairwoman Tanzila Narbaeva held high-level talks with Beate Andrees, Chief of Cabinet to the ILO Director-General, on the sidelines of the 114th Session of the International Labour Conference in Geneva, Uzbekistan's upper house announced Monday.

The bilateral meeting centered on Uzbekistan's ongoing legislative overhaul of labor relations, the reinforcement of its social protection framework, and the country's progress toward embedding internationally recognized decent-work principles into domestic law.

Andrees praised the pace and scope of Tashkent's reforms and confirmed the ILO's readiness to broaden its engagement with the republic — including co-sponsorship of joint programs and policy initiatives, according to the official readout.

The talks also addressed a significant forthcoming diplomatic milestone: the 12th Global Conference of Young Parliamentarians, scheduled for September 4–6 in Samarkand. ILO representatives expressed concrete interest in facilitating the forum and confirmed the organization intends to send a delegation.

The Samarkand conference adds a soft-power dimension to Uzbekistan's international labor diplomacy, positioning the Central Asian nation as a regional convener on youth governance at a moment when it is simultaneously pursuing deep domestic labor reform.

Uzbekistan has accelerated engagement with multilateral institutions since President Shavkat Mirziyoyev launched a broad modernization program, with labor law revision and social protection expansion among its marquee policy commitments.