Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2025, published 114th ILC session (2026)

Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105) - Turkmenistan (Ratification: 1997)

The Committee notes the observations of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) received on 2 September 2025. It further takes note of the ILO observance mission of recruitment and working conditions during the 2024 and 2025 cotton harvests, carried out in accordance with the road map of cooperation activities between the ILO and the Government of Turkmenistan for 2024–25.

Follow-up to the conclusions of the Committee on the Application of Standards (International Labour Conferenc e, 112th Session, June 2024)

The Committee notes the detailed discussion by the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards (Conference Committee), which took place in June 2024 during the 112th Session of the International Labour Conference.

Article 1(b) of the Convention. Imposition of forced labour as a method of mobilizing and using labour for purposes of economic development. Cotton production. The Committee notes that, in its conclusions adopted in June 2024, the Conference Committee deplored the persistence of the widespread use of forced labour in relation to the annual state-sponsored cotton harvest in Turkmenistan. The Conference Committee urged the Government, in consultation and cooperation with the social partners, to take all necessary measures to: (i) ensure the complete elimination of the use of compulsory labour; (ii) improve recruitment and working conditions in the cotton sector in line with international labour standards; (iii) eliminate the compulsory quota system for the production and harvesting of cotton and ensure that no one is threatened with punishment for the lack of fulfilment of production quotas in line with the Convention; (iv) issue clear instructions on the prohibition of the use of forced labour and strengthen labour inspection and law enforcement; (v) prosecute and sanction appropriately any public official who participates in the forced mobilization of workers for the cultivation or harvest of cotton; (vi) ensure that victims of the forced mobilization have access to effective remedies, including measures to prevent future harm; and (vii) promote social dialogue and continue engaging with the ILO and independent employers’ and workers’ organizations, to ensure the full application of the Convention in practice, including within the framework of the 2024–25 road map.

In its report, the Government indicates its firm intention to cooperate openly and constructively with the ILO to prevent forced labour practices, which is confirmed by the measures implemented in cooperation with the ILO over the recent period (2021–24), including the adoption of road maps for 2023 and 2024–25. In particular, the Government indicates various activities undertaken to effectively implement the priority actions of the road map for 2024–25, including: (i) the ILO technical mission that took place in May 2024 to discuss the development of Government instructions for the selection of personnel and working conditions during the 2024 cotton harvest, as well as mechanisms for resolving complaints and recourse to effective remedies; (ii) the ILO visit that took place in June 2024 together with social partners to discuss the awareness-raising campaign to promote the employment of workers and ensure decent working conditions during the cotton harvest; (iii) the ILO visit to meet the Office of the Ombudsman, law enforcement and judicial authorities at central and regional levels with the aim of enhancing access to effective remedies; (iv) the undertaking of the seminar on labour inspection and occupational safety and health with the participation of the ILO and relevant ministries and agencies of Turkmenistan in June 2024; and (v) the undertaking of awareness-raising activities on the prevention of forced labour in July-August 2024 in the regions of Turkmenistan targeting local public authorities, social partners and public organizations.

The Government also indicates that, following consultations with the ILO and social partners, it was decided to include in the National Action Plan on Human Rights for 2021–25 measures to prevent forced labour, ensure compliance with legislation, and strengthen monitoring in this regard. In accordance with the Presidential decree on Improving the Activities of the Office of the Ombudsman, adopted in June 2024, a new department for the protection of human rights in the private sector of the economy was established within the Office of the Ombudsman. As indicated by the Government, law enforcement agencies and other competent authorities have received no reports or complaints from the public regarding cases of forced labour in the cotton sector, and no criminal proceedings have been initiated in this respect.

The Committee notes that the ITUC, in its observations, indicates that forced labour practices in cotton production remain widespread in Turkmenistan. In particular, during the 2024 harvest, although there were shifts in the mobilization of teachers and doctors, all groups of public sector employees, including technical staff at schools, kindergartens, hospitals, and clinics, as well as employees of utilities organizations, public agencies, and state-owned factories, most of whom are women, continued to be mobilized or extorted to pay for replacement pickers. Additionally, police reportedly forced women accused of prostitution to work in cotton fields. In addition, military conscripts, prisoners, and people found guilty of administrative offences were also forcibly mobilized to harvest cotton. The ITUC further indicates that cotton pickers reported that state security officials monitored mobilized workers to prevent them from taking photos or videos of the harvest that could be shared with international organizations. The ITUC also highlights that cotton pickers continued to face difficult, abusive, or dangerous working and living conditions, including work under extreme temperatures, without personal protective equipment and adequate food and water, as well as poor, unsanitary living conditions. Although the average pay for picking cotton was higher in the 2024 harvest, it still fell short of a living wage. Moreover, very few pickers worked under written contracts. The ITUC further indicates that the Government did not fulfil the road map’s top priority, as a Presidential decree explicitly prohibiting the coerced mobilization of workers for the cotton harvest has not been issued. According to the ITUC, although the Government has started engaging with the ILO regarding forced labour, its engagement is coupled with, as yet, an unchanged policy of systematic state-imposed forced labour.

The Committee takes due note that, with the Government’s acceptance, an ILO observance mission of recruitment and working conditions of cotton pickers took place during the 2024 and 2025 cotton harvests. According to the ILO report “2024 observance of recruitment and working conditions in the cotton harvest in Turkmenistan”, the 2024 ILO observance included four rounds of 10 consecutive observation days each, with five observance teams deployed across all five regions of Turkmenistan in every round. This setup involved 40 ILO officials and resulted in 200 individual observation days. A total of 472 cotton fields were visited, involving surveys with 1,762 cotton pickers and interviews with 472 farmers. Observers also visited 379 public institutions and state-owned enterprises, surveying 2,047 staff members and interviewing 385 institutional heads. The Committee further notes from the preliminary findings of the 2025 ILO observance, that a similar process was followed in 2025 of four 10-day rounds, although the final round included four teams instead of five due to funding constraints, totalling 190 individual observation days. The four observation rounds were strategically scheduled to cover different phases of the cotton harvest from August to November 2024 and 2025.

The findings of the 2024 and 2025 ILO observance visits indicate that the wage adjustments (at least 1 manat per kilogram of cotton picked) introduced by the Government in 2024 represented a notable increase compared to 2023, when the average reported rate stood at 0.58 manat per kilogram. At the same time, indicators of forced mobilization were reported during the ILO observance in 2024. These indicators included the involvement of public servants, staff, or prisoners in government institutions in cotton picking; reported negative consequences for individuals if they do not participate in cotton picking; and the requirement to pay a fee or provide a replacement picker to avoid participation. The reported indicators of forced mobilization remained at similar levels in 2025. Furthermore, interference during data collection remained a significant concern in 2024, which continued to be observed in 2025.

The Committee also notes that the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, in its 2024 concluding observations, noted with concern reports of the widespread use of the forced labour of civil servants during the cotton harvest (mainly women) under threat of such penalties as the loss of wages or salary cuts and the termination of employment, as well as other sanctions (CEDAW/C/TKM/CO/6).

While taking due note of the Government’s stated commitment to preventing forced labour and the measures taken under the road map for 2024–25 in collaboration with the ILO, the Committee strongly urges the Government to redouble its efforts to ensure the complete elimination of the use of compulsory labour of workers, particularly from the public sector, in cotton production, including through the issuance of the Presidential decree explicitly prohibiting the coerced mobilization of workers for the cotton harvest, a key priority of the road map for 2024–25. The Committee further urges the Government to continue to take measures to raise public awareness on the prevention of forced mobilization in cotton picking, to improve recruitment and working conditions of cotton pickers, and to strengthen enforcement and complaints mechanisms. In this regard, the Committee strongly requests the Government to continue to engage with the ILO and the social partners, within a cooperation framework, to ensure the full application of the Convention in practice. It requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to this end and the concrete results achieved.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.