Behzod Musaev has headed the "Vatandoshlar" Public Fund
Former director of the Migration Agency Behzod Musaev has become head of the "Vatandoshlar" public fund, which supports compatriots abroad. Previously, he served as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Health, and later as Minister of Employment and Poverty Reduction.
Behzod Musaev has become the head of the "Vatandoshlar" public fund
Ex-director of the Migration Agency Behzod Musaev has been appointed Chairman of the Board of the "Vatandoshlar" ("Compatriots") public fund.
He succeeded Odiljon Sattarov, who had held the post since September 2021. Sattarov is currently listed on the website as Deputy Chairman of the Board.
Behzod Musaev (born in 1973) headed the Agency for External Labor Migration in September 2024. In September 2026, Muhsinkhuja Abdurakhmonov became the director of the Migration Agency.
Prior to his work at the agency, Musaev served as Minister of Employment and Poverty Reduction. Previously, he was Minister of Health, Deputy Prime Minister for Social Development, and Chairman of the Accounts Chamber and the State Tax Committee.
The "Vatandoshlar" public fund was established by a presidential decree dated August 11, 2021, to develop cooperation with compatriots abroad and assist in protecting their rights and freedoms.
An initial allocation of 5 billion sums from the Cabinet of Ministers' reserve fund was provided for the creation of the fund. Sources of funding were defined as state subsidies and social orders, founders' funds, donations, grants, and other proceeds.
The decree provides for annual subsidies based on justified applications, but does not set a fixed amount.
During Behzod Musaev's leadership, the Migration Agency's activities were accompanied by investigations and public allegations against its employees and management.
In May 2026, the department under the Prosecutor General's Office reported the discovery of an organized criminal group that, according to the agency, extorted $7,000 to $12,000 from citizens in addition to official payments for sending them to work in South Korea. The department estimated the total amount of collected funds at nearly $90 million.
The former head of the agency's representative office in South Korea, Aziz Tashtemirov, was placed on the international wanted list on suspicion of fraud. Later, via the Korea24 Telegram channel, he made a series of allegations against Musaev. In particular, Tashtemirov claimed that the head instructed him to purchase expensive goods and a Hyundai Palisade car, and also reported the payment of salaries to employees who did not actually work.
On August 5, the department under the Prosecutor General's Office reported the initiation of a criminal case under Article 167 of the Criminal Code — theft by embezzlement or misappropriation. According to the department, two agency employees were paid 931.6 million sums for a period when they did not actually work. Another 88.5 million sums were paid to eight employees during the period of disciplinary sanctions. The report did not specify whether Musaev was a subject of the case.
Tashtemirov also claimed that the Consti Hotel in Tashkent belonged to Musaev's family members, estimating its value at $3–4 million. According to the public registry, the enterprise was registered in February 2025, with Musaev's daughter and son listed as its founders. The specified cost of the hotel was Tashtemirov's estimate. At the time of publication of the material, Musaev had not commented on the allegations, while the agency's press service stated that they were not directly related to his activities.
A separate debate was sparked by the terms of contracts with Uzbekistanis sent to South Korea under an E-9 visa. They provided for a fine of $2,000 for each month in the event of changing jobs without the agreement of the agency's representative office. Korean human rights activists criticized this mechanism as a tool for pressuring workers.
On September 3, shortly before reports of Musaev's dismissal from office, the agency reported the removal from the tripartite contract of requirements to pre-agree job changes with the representative office and fines for non-compliance with this condition.