A series of national consultations were held in Turkmenistan to discuss the results of the social protection system assessment conducted using the Core Diagnostic Instrument (CODI).

The consultations were conducted by UNICEF jointly with the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population, the Ministry of Finance and Economy, and the State Statistics Committee, with the strategic participation of the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the World Bank.

Consultations began on April 21 and concluded with a final conference on May 21, bringing together representatives of the Mejlis, key government agencies, etrap administrations, the Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs of Turkmenistan, the National Center of Trade Unions, the Women's Union, the Youth Union, organizations of persons with disabilities, the National Red Crescent Society, and other civil society organizations, according to a UNICEF press release.

The consultations reviewed the findings of the assessment and discussed priorities for strengthening social protection across the life cycle, starting from childhood – for children and families, the working-age population, people with disabilities and older people – to ensure more inclusive and targeted support at every stage of life.

"A national social protection strategy can become the overarching framework that brings together social security reforms, social services, and employment promotion measures. To achieve this, it is important that it be comprehensive, supported by funding, have a clear implementation timeline, and be accompanied by a multi-year action plan," noted Lakshmi Bhavani, Acting UNICEF Representative in Turkmenistan.

"We view the CODI results as an important basis for further work on developing the social protection system in line with international standards and national priorities," emphasized Ms. Khalbibi Tachdzhanova, Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Protection of the Population.

The conference also served as a platform for discussing a comprehensive package of recommendations, prepared based on the results of the CODI analysis, aimed at accelerating social protection reforms envisaged by the National Program for Socioeconomic Development of the President of Turkmenistan.