A new mobile application “IshtApp” for job-match between the unemployed and employers, developed by UNDP with the financial support of the Government of Japan, was launched in Bishkek today. 

In support of socioeconomic recovery, UNDP has developed an application for job search in all regions of Kyrgyzstan, offering an innovative matching system for the unemployed and employers to meet their respective needs in searching jobs and adequate workforce. It is targeted to help the recently unemployed, many of whom were working in the shadow economy, such as daily workers and returning migrants, including women, youth, and minorities to link to new employment opportunities and access skills upgrading services.

A job seeker can register an account, add, change or remove her resume, search vacancies using multiple settings or directly chat with potential employers. An employer can register an account, and create, edit or remove vacancies. The website www.ishtapp.kg allows to administer all processes related to this job-match platform to include management and monitoring of resumes, generation of analytics related to the labor-market trends based on information processed and received from all users including the unemployed and employers. In addition, users can access the free training courses. The application is available in both Kyrgyz and Russian languages.

UNDP Resident Representative Louise Chamberlain said: “The economic and social disruption caused by COVID-19 has caused many businesses to fail and forced them to let go of their workers. The impact is becoming more apparent as the pandemic continues with deepening poverty and affecting the vulnerable populations most. But the pandemic has also brought opportunities, and the digital economy offers a recovery path that is more equitable and greener. The App helps match job seekers and employers throughout the country and enables investment in digital entrepreneurship,” said Chamberlain.

“We will carry out a number of activities to help solve the social and economic issues that emerged in Kyrgyzstan due to COVID-19. We expect that the application will become a reliable platform for job seekers and employers to find one another. Citizens of Kyrgyzstan who have lost their jobs, labour migrants forced to return home during the pandemic, employers, and small and medium-sized businesses will benefit from this platform,” said His Excellency Maeda Shigeki, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to the Kyrgyz Republic.

 “Our goal was to create a convenient and functional application with the best vacancies in Kyrgyzstan in real time. The app has an Artificial Intelligence-based analytical system which shows users only the most relevant vacancies. The online platform allows to find most suitable employers or job seekers in the shortest time,” Mr. Mirbek Okenov, the Director of Ulut Soft company that worked on the application explains.

The mobile application was first created under the pilot project “Skills for Reintegration” implemented by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) in 2018. Granted the rights by GIZ to develop the application further, UNDP makes efforts to develop additional services within the app.

IshtApp offers an opportunity to build on digital connectivity in Kyrgyzstan, where the mobile Internet penetration is 94 percent (Freedom House, 2020) and 92 percent of the population has mobile phones (National Statistics Committee of Kyrgyzstan, 2018).

In 2020, a joint report (2020) by the Asian Development Bank, UNDP, and the Economic Policy Research Institute under the Ministry of Economy of the Kyrgyz Republic titled “COVID-19 in the Kyrgyz Republic: Socioeconomic and Vulnerability Impact Assessment and Policy Response”, expected the unemployment rate to exceed 20%. Recently, the National Statistical Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic presented a sample survey “Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Households”, in which approximately 22% of households claimed that at least one member of their families lost their job or was forced to return from abroad due to loss of earnings.

The app is available at:

Google Play Market (Android)

App Gallery (Harmony)

App Store (iOS)

Media contacts

For more information please contact Ainagul Abdrakhmanova, UNDP Communications Officer at ainagul.abdrakhmanova@undp.org or/and at 0770755 776

Photos from event are available in Flickr album. 

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UNDP is the UN's global development network, an organization advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. They are on the ground in 166 countries, working with them on their own solutions to global and national development challenges. 

Snapshots from the event

Photo: Nurbek kyzy Sonun / UNDP Kyrgyzstan