Today, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), in partnership with the Samarkand Sub-commission on Combating Trafficking in Persons and the non-governmental organization Istiqlol Avlodi, opened the second Information and Consultation Center for Migrants and Families of Migrants.

The center will equip labor migrants with information to prevent being trafficked while abroad. It will also provide legal advice, vocational training, and psychological services to returned migrants and their families.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the center, Democracy and Governance office director of the USAID Mission in Uzbekistan, Faye Haselkorn applauded the cooperation among USAID, the Government of Uzbekistan and civil society and stated, “The Center is located in the ‘House of NGOs’ which will help to link migrants, their families and survivors of trafficking to services that both civil society and government can provide.”

In March 2022 in Jizzakh, USAID opened the first Information and Consultation Center for Migrants and Families of Migrants. Since then, the Jizzakh center has processed about 120 applications from potential victims of human trafficking and families of migrants, and provided 16 trafficking survivors with repatriation support. All other applicants were provided with consultations, legal, and social services support.

The migrant resource centers are part of USAID’s Safe Migration in Central Asia program, which is implemented by Winrock International. The program aims to prevent trafficking in persons, protect survivors, and promote safe migration through increased awareness.