Tajikistan IV

Since declaring independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Tajikistan has become one of the largest exporters of labour migrants in the world. The total number of labour migrants from Tajikistan is estimated at 10-20% of the total population. Russia is by far the most important labour market for the country. In Russia, Tajik labour migrants are mainly employed in the lower skilled and informal sector in agriculture, construction, trade and communal services. Tajikistan has a visa-free regime with the Russian Federation, therefore Tajik citizens’ travel to Russia within a legal framework. However, there are irregular migrants among the labour migrants from Tajikistan. In recent years, Russia has been deporting migrant workers and preventing them from re-entering the country. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the global travel restrictions imposed in early 2020 meant that many labour workers were either unable to leave Tajikistan or were not able to return from Russia.

Public and private employment agencies (PEA) play an important role in facilitating the deployment of Tajik migrant workers. Due to the abovementioned complications in labour migration to Russia and the COVID-19 restrictions on cross-border movement, the demand for support from PEAs in finding employment abroad may be expected to increase.

It is in this context that the Ministry of Labour, Migration and Employment of Tajikistan (MoLMEP) and three local NGOs requested support from MIEUX+ to effectively coordinate with private employment agencies (PEAs) on migrants' rights and ethical recruitment. This 4th Action in the country will deliver the following documents:

• Assessment report on regulating, monitoring and coordinating with private employment agencies
• Guidelines for the MoLMEP on good practices of coordinating, regulating and monitoring PEAs
• Information materials on the instruments and policies of fair recruitment