Labour migration within Central Asia is primarily a survival strategy for countless households in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Recent trends seem to suggest that the stagnating macroeconomic situation, high unemployment, low wages, scarce employment opportunities, not to mention the high fertility rate, are drivers of migration in the region.
While the benefits of labour migration in Central Asia are beyond doubt; it enriches both receiving countries such as Kazakhstan and the poorer sending countries by providing resources for families, and leads to empowerment for women, youth and adolescents; unfortunately it is still to a large extent an irregular phenomenon with challenges in regulation of the labour migration legislation.
According to the International Legal Initiative Public Foundation (ILI), migrant workers in Kazakhstan, in particular those who are undocumented, face systematic violations of their rights during the registration for work and residence permits, leading to lack of access to justice, labour exploitation, obstacles in accessing health services, housing and education as well as to situations of destitution and forced labour.
Thus, the International Legal Initiative Public Foundation and its partners in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan are implementing a project which aims to enhance protection of the rights of migrant workers in four countries of Central Asia through promotion of harmonization of these countries’ policies related to labour migration.
This project contributes to harmonisation and convergence of countries’ labour migration policies in order to ultimately protect rights of migrant workers, strengthen the role of civil society in promoting the harmonization of policies in the field of labour migration and improve the legal protection of migrant workers in countries of origin and destination.
About the implementing agency
International Legal Initiative Public Foundation (ILI) is one of leading human rights NGOs in Kazakhstan. It is a member of Dialogue platform between government of Kazakhstan and civil society supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
