On Thursday January 7, deputy governor of Khatlon province, Akram Sulaimonzoda, visited the mardikorbozor (mardikorbozor literally translates as “worker market”) in Bokhtar, the capital of Khatlon province.  Every day, hundreds of people gather at the Bokhtar mardikorbozor looking for a day job.

During a meeting with mardikor, Sulaimonzoda said he had come to discuss with them issues of providing them with job.  

Head of the Khatlon Agency for Labor and Employment of the Population, deputy mayors of Bokhtar and Levakant cities as well as deputy heads of Khuroson, Kushoniyon, Jaloliddini-Balkhi and Vakhsh district accompanied Sulaimonzoda on his visit to the mardikorbozor.  Residents of these cities and districts make the bulk of mardikor in the area. 

Sulaimonzoda noted that the Khatlon authorities wanted to create a unified register of unemployed and organize training courses for unemployed.    

Recall, the Minister of Labor, Migration and Employment, Ms. Shirin Amonzoda, visited the female mardikorbozor in Bokhtar on December 21.  During a meeting with female mardikor, the minister noted that they should take training courses to improve their qualifications.  Free training courses for female laborers will be organized by the Khatlon Agency for Labor and Employment of the Population. 

The mardikorbozor in Bokhtar is the only laborer market in Tajikistan, where women can tout for work.

The Bokhtar female laborer market appeared about eight years ago.  According to some sources, at the beginning, only around 20 to 30 women would muster. The number has reportedly grown sharply in the past year or so, to around 100.  The majority of female mardikor are the abandoned wives of men who have gone abroad for work, or divorcees with children.

According to official data, the current number of unemployed people in the country is more than 53,000.