State Secretary Dr. Rolf Schmachtenberg and Bekhzod Musaev, Uzbekistan’s Minister of Labour and Poverty Eradication
State Secretary Dr. Rolf Schmachtenberg met with Bekhzod Musaev, Uzbekistan’s Minister of Labour and Poverty Eradication, at the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in Berlin on 28 September 2023.
Their talks focused on the contribution of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs to the migration agreement between Germany and Uzbekistan, which is currently under negotiation, as well as on bilateral cooperation with Uzbekistan’s labour ministry. The two sides are especially interested in the integration of workers from Uzbekistan in Germany’s labour market, but also in policies for persons with disabilities in the two countries.
The German Government aims to intensify bilateral relations and economic cooperation with countries in Central Asia. In this context, State Secretary Schmachtenberg stressed the new opportunities provided by Germany’s modernised law on skilled immigration and discussed successful pilot projects for the labour market integration of Uzbek migrants in some German Länder. He added that the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs would support a successful conclusion of the migration agreement between Germany and Uzbekistan: I am glad that negotiations about a migration agreement between Germany and Uzbekistan have started. Dr. Joachim Stamp, Germany’s Special Commissioner for Migration Agreements, will have the full backing of all federal ministries concerned
, stated State Secretary Schmachtenberg.
During the talks, policies for persons with disabilities were also brought up as this is not only a priority for the German Government. In November, the Uzbek organisation for persons with disabilities will host a conference on the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which will also be attended by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs.