Dushanbe, Tajikistan, March 18, 2014 – The UN Women and IOM Mission in Tajikistan, with financial support from the Government of the Kingdom of Norway, announced the launch of a two-year project aimed at providing support to women of migrant households in need to reduce their potential exposure to domestic violence, human trafficking, or impoverishment by building their skills and access to income generation activities, increasing access to psychosocial assistance, legal counselling, and other public services.

The event brought together government representatives, including local level authorities from the targeted regions of Khatlon province and Rasht Valley of Tajikistan, international organizations, local NGOs, experts, and mass media.

At the launching ceremony, the Deputy Minister of Labour, Migration and Population Employment of Tajikistan, Mr. Nurullo Makhmadulloev, the Head of Migration Service, Mr. Anvar Boboev and Deputy Chairperson of the Committee for Women and Family Affairs, Ms. Marhabo Alimova underscored the importance of such initiatives benefiting migrant families. In this regard, they highlighted that the project corresponds to the priorities of the state in the field of labour migration and stressed the necessity of continuing efforts to provide pre-departure orientation seminars to promote the protection of Tajik migrant workers, create employment opportunities in the country, raise public awareness on the risks of irregular migration, help to prevent early forced marriage and to stop the practice of allowing men to divorce their wives via SMS. 

In recent years IOM developed a wealth of practical experience in these areas.  Since 2010, IOM has been building close ties with the UN Women, the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID), Swiss Cooperation Office and recently with Save the Children, including a wide range of Civil Society Organizations in implementing a variety of labour migration projects ranging from legal empowerment of women from migrant households to protection of their rights and enhancing socio-economic opportunities of migrant men, women and their families across the country. 

"We see this event as another sign of the Government of Tajikistan’s ongoing commitment to reduce the socio-economic vulnerabilities faced by a portion of women from migrant families," said Tajma Kurt, IOM Chief of Mission in Tajikistan. "It also reconfirms the Government’s stake in fulfilling the aims of the Convention on the Protection of the Human Rights of Migrant Workers and their Family Members and the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)."