The European Union has called on Turkmenistan to eliminate forced and compulsory labour in cotton production, citing persistent violations documented in an ILO report published on 1 June 2026. In a statement delivered on 10 June 2026 at the International Labour Conference in Geneva, the EU expressed serious concern over the findings of the ILO's 2025 observance report on recruitment and working conditions in the cotton harvest, which showed that major challenges remain in eradicating child labour and forced labour.
The statement, delivered on behalf of the EU and its member states, noted that the ILO Committee of Experts has pointed to persistent forced labour in cotton production and called for its elimination in law and practice. The EU urged the government to ensure the full elimination of forced and compulsory labour in the cotton sector, in cooperation with the ILO and social partners.
Specific concerns raised by the EU include reports that public sector employees — including school, hospital and enterprise staff — were mobilised during the 2024 and 2025 harvests or pressured to pay for replacement pickers. The EU also flagged that women were disproportionately affected, and that there were allegations concerning the mobilisation of prisoners and military conscripts. The EU stressed that no person should face coercion or penalties linked to forced mobilisation in cotton production.
The EU recalled the importance of eliminating the compulsory quota system and urged the government to issue, as a priority, a presidential decree prohibiting coerced mobilisation for the cotton harvest and to ensure its implementation at all levels. The EU also expressed concern over interference during data collection affecting ILO observance teams.
Difficult and dangerous conditions faced by cotton pickers were also highlighted, including extreme temperatures, lack of food and water, poor sanitary conditions, limited access to protective equipment, insufficient written contracts, and remuneration that does not ensure a living wage. The EU called on the government to improve recruitment and working conditions and to ensure that all labour in the cotton harvest is genuinely voluntary.
The EU underlined the importance of accountability, urging the government to investigate allegations of forced labour, prosecute and sanction any public official involved, and ensure that enforcement mechanisms operate effectively in practice. It also encouraged continued awareness-raising and meaningful engagement with independent employers' and workers' organisations.
In a related development, the EU noted the launch on 13 May 2026 of the ILO-EU project 'Promoting Decent Work and the Prevention of Child and Forced Labour in Turkmenistan', a 2 million euro initiative until 2027. Implemented in partnership with the government, the project aims to strengthen the legislative framework, enhance institutional capacity, and advance ratification and implementation of key ILO instruments, including the Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, Labour Inspection Conventions, Occupational Safety and Health Conventions, and the Social Security Convention.
The EU also recalled its Forced Labour Regulation, which introduces a ban on products made with forced labour, ensuring they cannot be sold in the EU market, and which will enter into full force in December 2027.
The statement took note of additional written information provided by the government of Turkmenistan and its stated intention to cooperate with the ILO, but called on the government to translate this cooperation into concrete progress and to intensify engagement within a cooperation framework extended to 2026 to implement the recommendations of the Committee of Experts.
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