Uzbekistan’s experience in ensuring gender equality and creating decent working conditions will be improved on the basis of international standards
On May 23 this year, the National Commission for Combating Trafficking in Persons and Forced Labor, the Republican Commission on Increasing the Role of Women in Society, Gender Equality and Family, together with the International Labor Organization, held an international conference in Tashkent on the topic “Gender Equality and Ways of Decent Work in Uzbekistan” .
The conference was attended by Tanzila Narbaeva, Chairwoman of the Senate of the Oliy Majlis, Olga Kulaeva, Director of the Bureau of the International Labor Organization for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, more than 100 specialists and experts from international organizations and foreign countries, heads of diplomatic missions in Uzbekistan, representatives of responsible ministries and departments.
At the event, the Senate Chairwoman emphasized that gender policy has become a key factor in the development of society and the state. Concepts such as “gender and development”, “gender balance”, “the role of women in socio-political life” are reflected in government program documents and in the development of any legal act.
– The introduction of mandatory gender-legal examination of legislative acts and the creation of a gender audit institute is an important step towards ensuring gender equality. In addition, preventing gender discrimination, combating gender stereotypes and creating decent working conditions have become one of the key directions of state policy in this area. However, along with the successes achieved, we still have a lot to do in the field of ensuring labor, social and other rights of women, expanding their economic activity and professional development,” noted the Senate Chairwoman.
As the conference participants emphasized, the adoption of the Strategy for Achieving Gender Equality in Uzbekistan until 2030 made it possible to work in this direction on a systematic and targeted basis.
In particular, special attention is paid to improving national legislation based on international standards in the field of gender equality. In recent years, more than 40 legislative acts and important conceptual documents related to the field have been adopted.
The participants emphasized that within the framework of these documents, important measures are being taken to create equal rights and opportunities for women and men, strengthen the role of women in state and public administration, create the necessary conditions for their education, professional training, ensure employment, create decent working conditions, as well as increasing women's activity in economic life and protecting them from various types of oppression and violence.
Today, the share of women employed in healthcare and education is 77%, in economics and industry - 46%, about 2 thousand compatriots work in leadership positions in government and public organizations.
As a result of expanding opportunities for women's education, the number of women studying in higher education institutions has increased 6 times. In particular, it was noted that the proportion of women studying in bachelor's degrees increased from 38% to 49%, and in master's degrees from 37% to 50%.
International experts also highly appreciated that our country has radically reformed the system of labor relations and eradicated forced labor; special attention is paid to ensuring employment of the population within the framework of the principles of decent work.
In this regard, the program on decent work in Uzbekistan for 2021–2025, adopted jointly with the International Labor Organization, as well as measures for the widespread introduction of international standards in the field of labor, production and technical areas in the country’s economy are important.
During the event, Olga Kulaeva, Director of the Bureau of the International Labor Organization for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, specialists from a number of international organizations and representatives of diplomatic missions of foreign countries in Uzbekistan made presentations.
Based on the results of the event, recommendations were developed from participants of the international conference to ensure gender equality and the widespread application of decent work principles.
The recommendations define specific tasks to ensure gender equality, increase the socio-economic and political participation of women, strengthen social protection and protection from oppression, ensure equal access of women to education and health care, create safe and decent working conditions for them, decent wages and reducing informal employment, as well as consistently continuing to implement international standards in this direction.
