Catherwood LibraryILR School

A report released June 27 by the Human Rights Watch found that the World Bank has put over $50 million towards funding projects linked to forced labor in Uzbekistan within the agriculture industry. The Uzbek government reportedly coerced citizens, including children, into planting and harvesting cotton in the past two years. If they refused, the government threatened to fire them, withhold welfare, and suspend or expel them if they were students. Uzbekistan has additionally intimidated, detained, and supported violence against monitors and journalists reporting on forced labor. While loans from the World Bank can be withheld if there is reason to believe forced and child labor is occurring, the Uzbek-German Forum stated that by supporting these projects, the World Bank has created the impression that Uzbekistan is moving towards ending abusive labor systems. It has additionally called on the World Bank to stop funding projects that reinforce abuse of workers’ rights. The ILO stopped monitoring labor in Uzbekistan in 2016, believing that the government was aware of the forced labor issue and thus monitoring was no longer necessary.