IPA CIS Representatives Proposed Updating Model Law on Welfare of Disabled Persons to Reflect Current Labour Market Realities

The International Conference on the Development of Social and Rehabilitation Services and Support for Persons with Disabilities was held on 10-11 September 2026 in Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan.

The conference was organised by the Ministry of Employment and Poverty Reduction of the Republic of Uzbekistan, with the participation of the National Agency for Social Protection under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, and with the support of the CIS Advisory Board on Labor, Employment and Social Security, the Albrecht Federal Scientific and Educational Centre of Medical and Social Expertise and Rehabilitation, the basic organisation of the Commonwealth countries in the field of comprehensive rehabilitation of persons with disabilities, and the CIS Executive Committee.

Representatives of Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, as well as the IPA CIS and the CIS Executive Committee, took part in the Conference.

Secretary of the IPA CIS Permanent Commission on Social Policy and Human Rights, Executive Secretary of the IPA CIS Expert Advisory Board on Public Health Evgenia Vladimirova addressed via videoconferencing and spoke about the IPA CIS activities aimed at developing a draft of the revised Model Law on Welfare of Disabled Persons.

She also briefed the participants on the extensive systematic work being carried out to prepare documents regulating the provision of medical and social care. These include the Recommendations on Health Technology Assessment in the CIS Member Nations, the Recommendations on Assessment and Quality Management of Medical Care in the CIS Member Nations, and the CIS Model Health Code.

Member of the IPA CIS Expert Advisory Board on Public Health and Professor at the Department of Medical Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine of the Saint-Petersburg State Pediatric Medical University Igor Bozhkov emphasised that preserving human potential and preventing loss of work capacity should be based on the principles of preventing the development and progression of disability.

In his presentation, he examined in detail the state of disability-related challenges in relation to the labour potential of the CIS Member States, highlighting the need to amend the 2008 Model Law on Welfare of Disabled Persons. In his view, the amendments should take into account current labour market realities and digital transformation trends. It is necessary to develop Commonwealth-wide harmonised criteria and definitions aimed at preventing disability, as well as supporting persons with disabilities in realising their employment potential and achieving professional integration. In addition, a system of financial regulation for these processes needs to be established.

The meeting addressed current issues related to the implementation of state policies on the rehabilitation of persons with disabilities, innovative approaches to providing social and rehabilitation services to this category of citizens, and their integration into the open labour market.

Participants exchanged experience in addressing practical challenges and implementing best practices and technologies in medical and social rehabilitation and the rehabilitation of persons with disabilities. National systems of comprehensive rehabilitation were also discussed.