In many regions of Uzbekistan, kindergarten operations have been temporarily suspended due to high temperatures. However, none of the state structures that declare support for gender policy, including the Committee of Women of Uzbekistan, the Gender Commission at the Senate, and the women's wings of political parties, have proposed initiatives to help parents whose children are left without supervision.
According to data from the National Statistical Committee, women in Uzbekistan spend almost two and a half times more time on unpaid domestic work than men (5.36 hours versus 2.18 hours). This statistic includes both total time and time dedicated to childcare.
The International Labour Organization indicates that women provide 76.2% of all unpaid care work. Furthermore, an informal employment study conducted by UNDP in Uzbekistan in 2025 revealed that family responsibilities, especially those related to caring for children and the elderly, often limit women's ability to work full-time.
World Bank experts emphasize that childcare responsibilities are one of the key reasons for the reduced participation of women in the country's labor force. Consequently, the temporary closure of kindergartens cannot be viewed solely as a sanitary or climatic measure; its gender implications must be considered, and appropriate support measures must be developed.
The assumption that the closure of kindergartens has a minor impact on women's opportunities is refuted by recent data from the U.S. National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). The study authors demonstrated that the sudden need for childcare is not distributed gender-neutrally. Analyzing cases of temporary closure of educational institutions due to forest fires, researchers found that even short-term and unpredictable disruptions in the care system create additional burdens that primarily fall on mothers.
The research shows that the impact of such 'care shocks' affects mothers' employment more severely. Women are more often forced to reduce working hours, take leave, or cease working altogether, while changes in men's employment are much less pronounced. Although the study is based on U.S. data, it demonstrates a general trend: when organized childcare suddenly becomes unavailable, women are most often forced to take on additional responsibilities, which limits their professional opportunities.
Thus, although the closure of kindergartens during heatwaves is necessary to protect children's health, the lack of accompanying support measures leads to a redistribution of care responsibilities, effectively placing climate risks on families with young children. This means that climate adaptation in education without social adaptation for families exacerbates existing gender inequality in the distribution of unpaid labor.
Since women in Uzbekistan perform the majority of unpaid care work, such decisions disproportionately affect working mothers, increasing the likelihood of forced leave, reduced working hours, and exclusion of women from paid employment. Therefore, any short-term disruptions in the care system require gender-sensitive support measures.
To improve the situation, it is proposed to introduce a special paid parental leave during such situations, legally enshrining the right of one parent to such leave when kindergartens are forced to close due to natural disasters. Flexible working arrangements could also be implemented, allowing state structures to switch to remote formats or adjust schedules during heatwaves.
Another area is adapting the kindergartens themselves to climatic conditions: this could include introducing shorter working days or limiting operation during the hottest hours. If this is not possible, provisions should be made for on-duty groups in some kindergartens for children of medical personnel, emergency service employees, and other parents who cannot work remotely.
Government bodies are recommended to mandate themselves to conduct a gender impact assessment before making any decisions regarding kindergarten closures. Such an assessment should determine how many parents will be affected by the measure, in which areas of employment parents will suffer, and what types of support they will need.
An important step is also investment in the climate resilience of kindergartens, such as installing air conditioning systems, sunshades, improving ventilation, and ensuring backup power for cooling systems. Creating such conditions in several kindergartens can form the basis for establishing the aforementioned on-duty groups.
The government can begin collecting data to develop gender-oriented policies now. It is necessary to record information about parents forced to miss work due to kindergarten closures and how they formalize this (sick leave, unpaid leave, use of annual leave). This data must be collected broken down by gender. Furthermore, it is important to track the impact of kindergarten closures on parents' weekly plans, which is particularly relevant in conditions of high informal employment.
According to the World Meteorological Organization, Asia is warming faster than the global average, and extreme heat has become a characteristic feature of recent years, including 2025 with heatwaves in Central Asia. This implies that the temporary closure of kindergartens will become a more frequent occurrence and must be accompanied by timely social support measures, primarily for women who bear the main burden of unpaid care. Protecting children and supporting parents must happen in parallel so that climate risks do not become exclusively a female problem.
All preschool educational institutions in the Bukhara region have temporarily suspended operations from July 15, 2026, to July 17, 2026, due to abnormally high air temperatures.
This was reported by the press service of the regional department of education. The agency noted that this week the region is expected to see temperatures rise to 44–45 degrees Celsius. This decision was made to ensure the protection of the life and health of preschool children, as well as to prevent negative consequences of extreme heat.
The restrictions apply to all preschool educational organizations within the region. State preschool institutions plan to resume their activities according to the established procedure, starting from July 20, 2026.
Authorities in the Khorezm and Navoi regions of Uzbekistan have decided to temporarily suspend the operation of several state preschool educational institutions due to the ongoing abnormal heatwave.
According to data from regional departments of preschool and school education, all state kindergartens in the Khorezm region will be closed from July 14 to July 17, 2026. These institutions are scheduled to resume normal operations on July 20, 2026.
In the Navoi region, authorities have implemented selective closure measures. State kindergartens in the Uchkuduk and Nurata districts, as well as certain preschool institutions in the Tamdy and Kanimekh districts, will be closed until July 17, 2026. For the remaining districts of the Navoi region, officials are conducting inspections of preschool institutions to ensure they comply with sanitary and hygienic standards and have the necessary cooling conditions. Decisions regarding potential further closures will be made based on the results of these inspections.
The Ministry of Preschool and School Education clarified that decisions on the temporary suspension of kindergarten operations are made independently by each regional administration. These actions are based on assessments and recommendations provided by territorial units of Uzhydromet (the Hydrometeorological Service Agency), the Sanitary and Epidemiological Welfare and Public Health Service, and local Hokimiyats. The Ministry emphasized that there are currently no plans for a nationwide closure of all preschool institutions.
These regional closures follow emergency measures taken in the Republic of Karakalpakstan, where state and private kindergartens in Nukus and eight adjacent districts suspended operations starting July 13, 2026, due to extreme temperatures. According to Uzhydromet forecasts, an intense dry air mass from the south will move across Uzbekistan between July 13 and July 17, 2026. Daytime temperatures are expected to reach between +41°C and +43°C overall, with peaks of +44°C to +46°C possible in northern, southern, and desert areas.
