LocationsBringing Life Back to Chorkesar: A Former Mining Community Rewrites Its Story
October 14, 2026
School children at Chorkesar School No.3 celebrating during the opening of the new sports facilities and water treatment system.
When you enter Chorkesar, you will immediately sense a community that is determined to reinvent itself. The narrative of its classrooms, tailoring workshops, and wellness centers is not merely one of recovery; it is about people working together to shape their own future, one achievement at a time.
Nestled in the mountains in Pop District of the Namangan Region in eastern Uzbekistan, Chorkesar was once a bustling Soviet-era uranium mining hub. After Soviet-era mining had come to an end and left an estimated 1 billion tons of uranium waste in Central Asia, the families of Chorkesar had to go through a difficult transition period. They faced a sharp economic shift, outdated infrastructure, and ongoing environmental vulnerabilities.
Today, change is no longer decided from the outside. Backed by funding from the European Union (EU) and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) alongside the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), "Stakeholder Engagement for Uranium Legacy Remediation in Central Asia" project is putting decisions directly into residents’ hands. Through local democratic votes and startup grants, the people of Chorkesar are proving that recovery is built from the ground up.
A Recent Celebration: Circular Water and Civic Pride at School No. 3
During a recent community celebration on September 16, 2026, students and community members gathered at School No. 3 to inaugurate a brand-new football field, a volleyball court, and an innovative water treatment system. These facilities were chosen directly by parents and teachers in a community-wide vote to prioritize safe sports spaces and clean water.
In this arid mountain region where dry terrain and a lack of reliable water access pose constant challenges, sustainable resource management is vital. To meet this need, the school's new circular water system purifies and recycles wastewater from the cafeteria and bathrooms to irrigate the surrounding grounds
“Under the old system, wastewater from our cafeteria and bathrooms simply pooled without any benefit to the school," said School Principal Odiljon Nishonov. "[Now], we reprocess that water and use it efficiently for irrigation, creating a healthier environment for our children and greening the area around our school.”
For Principal Nishonov, these upgrades are about more than modern plumbing – they provide safe spaces where more than 1,000 students can play, learn, and rebuild their civic pride.
Livelihoods Transformed: Mohinur Ismailova’s Active Textile Workshop
Mohinur Ismailova at her sewing business, together with some sewists in the background. The logos on the sewing machines have been removed using AI.
While municipal celebrations bring the community together, private economic self-reliance is what keeps Chorkesar moving forward. In a community where finding stable employment has historically been a steep climb, especially for women, tailor Mohinur Ismailova has rewritten the narrative.
In 2023, Mohinur began her sewing business with only two sewists in a small workspace. After learning about startup grants from the EU and UNDP, she prepared a business plan to increase production and buy modern machinery.
"We used to have a lot of unemployed women in our village, and the village is grateful," Mohinur shares. "We are now providing jobs for them. Thanks to this project, my work has expanded even more."
It transformed her small business, and within a short period, the number of items she produced each week increased from 50 – 100 items to 1,000 – 2,000 high-quality clothes for local markets. More significantly, her workshop became a welcoming place where local women could achieve financial independence, expanding her team from two to twenty full-time female employees.
What's Coming Next: Healing at Home at "Happy Kids" Wellness Center
Gulshoda Boymatova at her wellness center.
As new opportunities reshape livelihoods in Chorkesar, a local initiative is also reimagining health and healing. For many years, families in Chorkesar experienced a great deal of stress whenever a child or a mother needed specialized physical therapy. Families faced exhausting, costly trips to distant regional hospitals while struggling with expensive medical bills and transportation costs.
When she saw her neighbors struggling, resident physical therapist Gulshoda Boymatova decided to act. Motivated by her sister's orthopedic struggles, she founded "Happy Kids", the first wellness center in Chorkesar, offering specialized care at a small fraction of the cost of hospital treatment.
"When regional hospitals don’t have space, families can come here," Gulshoda explains. "I want to ensure that our children and women become even healthier."
While the wellness center is already open and treating local families, Gulshoda is actively preparing for the future. Having been officially awarded an EU-UNDP project startup grant, she will soon receive advanced pediatric physiotherapy devices, which may include equipment like electrophoresis apparatus or hydrotherapy baths. Once this upcoming equipment is delivered and installed, local families will no longer have to travel for specialized care – they will have access to complete rehabilitation services right in their own neighborhood.
A Resilient Future Built by the Community
The people of Chorkesar are demonstrating how former industrial areas can chart a self-reliant path forward. By linking school infrastructure upgrades with targeted grants, this mountain community is actively overcoming its uranium legacy – building a safer, healthier, and more resilient home for generations to come.
This initiative is carried out under the "Stakeholder Engagement for Uranium Legacy Remediation in Central Asia" project, which is now in its third phase. It supports communities affected by uranium legacy sites across Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan through stakeholder engagement, community-led development, and measures that strengthen environmental safety and sustainable economic opportunities. The project is funded by the European Union (EU) and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
