Uzbekistan, Latvia Plan New Driver Training System

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — Uzbekistan and Latvia are planning to introduce a new driver training system for employment with Latvian transport companies. The proposal was discussed during a meeting between Bekhzod Musayev, director of Uzbekistan's Migration Agency, Latvian Ambassador to Uzbekistan Girts Jaunzems and executives of transport and logistics company Kreiss, the Migration Agency said.

The Latvian side proposed organising driver training in Uzbekistan with the participation of Latvian specialists, as well as holding examinations in the country for Latvian driving licences. To implement the project, the Migration Agency was asked to assist in establishing a training ground, specialised classrooms and other necessary infrastructure.

The new system is expected to allow candidates to begin work immediately after arriving in Latvia, without having to complete mandatory training courses that currently take more than a month. It is also expected to reduce additional costs and shorten the adaptation period.

Representatives of Kreiss, which employs more than 1,000 Uzbek citizens, also stressed the importance of employees complying with the terms of their employment contracts. They said that in some cases workers who receive employer-funded training subsequently move to other companies, negatively affecting the organised labour migration system.

Following the meeting, Kreiss agreed to submit the technical requirements for the planned training and examination centre, while the Migration Agency will consider establishing the training ground and the necessary infrastructure in Tashkent Region.

The two sides also agreed to begin preparing a draft intergovernmental agreement between Uzbekistan and Latvia on organised labour migration.