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President of Uzbekistan underscores the importance of expanding multifaceted partnership agenda with Turkmenistan



On January 27, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev met with deputy chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan, Minister of Foreign Affairs Rashid Meredov, visiting our country within the framework of the program of regular Uzbek-Turkmen political consultations.

At the beginning of the conversation, Minister Rashid Meredov conveyed to the Head of our state sincere greetings and kind wishes from the President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and the National Leader of the Turkmen people, Chairman of the Khalk Maslakhaty of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.

Topical issues of further development and strengthening of Uzbek-Turkmen relations of friendship, good-neighborliness and strategic partnership were discussed.

The dynamic growth of trade turnover, which exceeded $1.1 billion in 2024, was noted with satisfaction. The “Shavat-Dashoguz” cross-border trade zone is being jointly established. Close and mutually beneficial cooperation continues in industrial cooperation, energy, transportation and logistics, agriculture and water use. Interregional contacts and cultural and humanitarian exchange are expanding.

On behalf of Turkmenistan’s leadership, deep gratitude was expressed to the leader of Uzbekistan for holding a presentation in Tashkent of Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov’s new book “Hakyda göwheri” (“The Pearl of Reason”), which was published in Uzbek.

Particular attention was paid to shaping a new broad agenda of the multifaceted partnership between Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, preparations for the upcoming summit visits, the Consultative Meeting of Heads of State of the region and summits in the “Central Asia Plus” format.

The sides also exchanged views on international policy issues.

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President of Uzbekistan congratulates Belarusian leader on the victory in a presidential election



In a telephone conversation on January 27, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev cordially congratulated President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko on his confident victory in the presidential election held the previous day.

The Head of our state emphasized that the high voter turnout and the voting results have once again confirmed the great trust of the Belarusian people in the incumbent President of the country, broad support for the political course and socio-economic reforms pursued.

The conversation focused on topical issues of further development of the Uzbek-Belarusian relations of multifaceted partnership in the context of practical implementation of the agreements reached during the visit of President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko to Uzbekistan on February 7-9 last year.

The volume of trade turnover in 2024 has exceeded $700 million. Importance of accelerating industrial cooperation projects in various sectors of the economy, continuing close business and interregional contacts, intensive cultural and humanitarian exchange has been emphasized.

The leaders of Uzbekistan and Belarus also reviewed the schedule of upcoming events.

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President of Uzbekistan discusses with the head of the European Council the issues of further expansion of multifaceted cooperation



During a telephone conversation between President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev and President of the European Council António Costa on January 23, topical issues on the bilateral and regional agenda were discussed.

The President of Uzbekistan sincerely congratulated António Costa on his election as the head of the European Council and wished him great success.

It was noted with deep satisfaction that the Uzbek-European multifaceted cooperation has reached the highest level in recent years and continues to develop dynamically in all priority dimensions.

Active contacts and exchanges at different levels have been carried out. In 2024, Uzbekistan’s trade turnover with the EU countries exceeded 6 billion euros, the portfolio of projects with European companies reached 30 billion euros.

Last year, an agreement on strategic partnership in the field of critical mineral resources was signed. There is fruitful cooperation in transportation and digital interconnectivity, green economy, culture and other areas.

Confidence was expressed in the early signing of the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the Republic of Uzbekistan and the European Union, which will give a serious impetus to the development of the entire range of relations.

The Uzbek leader and the head of the European Council also exchanged views on the international agenda and regional cooperation. Joint plans to prepare and hold the first “Central Asia-EU” summit in the city of Samarkand in April this year were discussed.

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Matters of equipping medical facilities reviewed



The Head of State got acquainted with the presentation of proposals to equip medical institutions and improve the quality of services.

Hospitals are provided with modern equipment in order to improve public health and quality of treatment. At least 100 billion soums are allocated annually from the budget for this purpose. In addition, last year alone, $200 million of foreign investment and $94 million of grants were attracted for the purchase of high-tech medical equipment.

As a result, computer tomographs, magnetic resonance tomographs and angiographs, which used to be available only in republican institutions, are now installed in regional and dozens of district hospitals. This means that specialized medical services have become closer to the people.

This year, 200 billion soums have been allocated from the state budget for these purposes. It is also planned to attract $370 million of foreign investment in the health sector.

Plans to equip medical institutions were outlined during the presentation.

In particular, 21 thousand units of medical equipment of 45 types and 6 reanimobiles will be purchased for 230 obstetric institutions across the country at the expense of $100 million of the Asian Development Bank.

Using 30 million euros of the German bank KfW, 862 units of equipment for treatment of cardiovascular diseases will be installed in 19 medical institutions of Karakalpakstan and Khorezm. In addition, a training center and a student dormitory will be built in the city of Termez with a grant of 13.5 million euros from the same bank. The center will be equipped with modern training and simulation equipment and information technologies.

The President emphasized that equipping medical institutions is only a part of the task and it is essential to train qualified specialists capable of working with the new equipment. The task has been set to organize additional training for doctors and nurses in the relevant institutions.

It was noted that it is also important to effectively use the available equipment. Thus, in the regions the average load on angiographs is only 34 percent, and the indicators on tomographs in different regions vary significantly.

In this regard, together with khokimiyats it is planned to implement projects on outsourcing and public-private partnership aimed at efficient operation of high-tech equipment in state medical institutions.

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Plans in financial control reported



On January 20, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed a presentation of the Accounting Chamber on the results of work accomplished in 2024 and the main tasks for 2025.

Financial control is crucial for the targeted use of funds and effective implementation of programs. In recent years, the activities of the Accounting Chamber have undergone changes, becoming a structure that assists in the adherence to budgetary discipline in the regions. Instead of the outdated system of inspections, an audit system based on international standards was introduced. Uzbekistan rose to the level of “good” in the World Bank’s “External Audit Indicator”.

On July 10, 2024 the Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On additional measures to strengthen financial control over the use of budgetary funds” was adopted. It defines tasks on improving internal audit systems in ministries and state bodies, as well as external audit of the consolidated budget execution.

The process of digital transformation of the chamber continues: the automated information system “Remote Audit” has been introduced and 34 ministries and agencies have been integrated into it.

As a result, in 2024, the Accounting Chamber provided additional budget revenues of 3.7 trillion soums through new sources. Inefficient expenditures of ministries and departments for 9.2 trillion soums were optimized, financial shortcomings for 2.3 trillion soums were prevented. Shortcomings worth 4.5 trillion soums were identified and eliminated in the sphere of public procurement.

It was noted that systematic work in this direction should be continued this year as well.

For this purpose, databases of 110 ministries and departments will be integrated into the IS “Remote Audit” of the Accounting Chamber. This will allow to fully cover budget expenditures in the amount of 480 trillion soums by monitoring this year.

Identification of additional sources of budget revenues, prevention of financial and other risks remain a permanent task, monitoring of financial activities of enterprises with state share is also important.

This year, measures will be taken to ensure the fullness of 309 trillion soums of revenues to the budget. The practice of auditing by international standards of projects implemented with funds from international financial institutions will begin.

The President emphasized the need to ensure strict compliance with the requirements of financial discipline and savings in all government agencies.

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New approaches in poverty reduction presented



President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed a presentation on measures for ensuring population’s employment and poverty reduction based on new approaches.

This year it’s planned to ensure employment of 5.2 million citizens and bring out of poverty 1.5 million people. For the first time 60 districts and cities will become territories free of poverty and unemployment. 

Jointly with mahalla bankers it’s planned to ensure constant employment for 1.5 million people and attract more than 2 million citizens to businesses. For this purpose it’s planned to allocate a total of 120 trillion soum of credit resources for small business projects. 

Based on best foreign practices, new approaches to poverty reduction will be introduced in 32 areas. In particular, solar power plants with a total capacity of 107 megawatts will be built in 300 complex mahallas, and members of low-income families will be hired to operate them on a cooperative basis.

In 123 districts, low-income citizens will be offered work on the creation of forest and nursery lands on 20 thousand hectares, as well as the cultivation of medicinal plants. They will be paid a subsidy of 375 thousand soums for every 100 trees planted.

In places with tourism potential it is planned to open guest houses and catering outlets, and at a number of post offices – e-commerce centers, where representatives of low-income families will also get jobs.

A total of 6.472 mahallas in 2025 will implement projects based on new approaches, which will help lift 210 thousand people out of poverty.

Special attention will be paid to remote villages with particularly difficult conditions. In them, the Association of Mahallas of Uzbekistan will take measures to foster a spirit of entrepreneurship, reduce dependency and support labor activity of low-income families.

The Head of State reiterated that 2025 will be decisive in reducing unemployment and poverty, and gave instructions to ensure a systematic and targeted approach to the implementation of the presented measures.

The Ministry of Employment and Poverty Reduction is tasked with strictly monitoring the implementation of these tasks. Each initiative and each activity will be entered into an electronic platform with subsequent verification of the created jobs on the tax base.

The importance of organizing training for the staff of local khokimiyats and “ mahalla seven”, as well as promotion of best practices was also noted.

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Main objectives in investments and exports defined



On January 16, a meeting was held under the chairmanship of the President Shavkat Mirziyoyev dedicated to discussing results of work on wide attraction of investments, increasing export volume and defining main tasks for the future. 

As a result of the country’s policy of openness and active capital attraction, the economy continues to grow steadily. In particular, in 2024, the gross domestic product increased by 6.5 percent, reaching $115 billion. The volume of foreign investment increased 1.6 times to about $35 billion. 242 large and medium-sized projects with a total value of $10 billion were put into operation. Exports reached the mark of $27 billion for the first time.

Last year, the volume of investments in the mining, oil and gas, chemical and agricultural sectors doubled. In 50 districts, the amount of attracted investment exceeded $100 million.

The meeting, held in a critical spirit, scrutinized the existing backlogs in detail.

Indicators of attracting investments in textile industry, “Uztransgaz”, “Uzmetcombinat” and “Uzsuvta’minot” systems have decreased. The volumes of investments and grants received by the ministries of ecology, agriculture, digital technologies, transport, construction, health, sport, culture, higher education, pre-school and school education do not correspond to the existing opportunities.

It was noted that some district khokims let investment and export issues slip. In particular, the khokims of Beruni, Karauzyak, Kungrad, Peshkun, Yangiabad, Kamashi, Khanka, Shavat, Romitan, Dekhkanabad, Mirishkor, Chirakchi, Narpay, Nurabad and Gulistan districts, as well as the city of Akhangaran were issued a reprimand. Khokim of Syrdarya region Akmaljon Mahmudaliyev was dismissed from his post for serious shortcomings in his work.

At the meeting the main tasks on investments and exports for the current year were defined.

First of all, the issue was considered by regions. For 27 districts the volume of investments of more than $200 million is planned. However, in 10 districts the plan does not even reach $40 million. The responsible persons were instructed to form new projects in these districts and increase the volume of investments.

The importance of efficient spending was separately emphasized. For example, over the last seven years, over 6 thousand enterprises have been launched due to investments of $120 billion. The analysis shows that for every $1,000 of investment, an average of $530 of added value is created annually. In the mining industry, this figure reaches $700.

However, in the oil and gas, metallurgical and construction materials industries, the return on investment is relatively low. The same situation is observed in Syrdarya, Bukhara regions and the Republic of Karakalpakstan.

At 92 new enterprises the equipment is not utilized, which delays the repayment of loans. Equipment imported by 105 entrepreneurs is still kept in customs warehouses.

The President emphasized that increasing the efficiency of investments should become the main task of regional and industry leaders.

– This will give a powerful impetus to the growth of our economy. Many new jobs are created through guaranteed purchases, the currency is saved, and adjacent spheres develop. Hokims should understand this and thoroughly delve into each project, organizing work as efficiently as possible, – said Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

Instructions have been given to hold fairs with the participation of entrepreneurs to develop new types of products and increase the share of local goods in major investment projects.

Leading enterprises in our country have started to attract foreign financing on their own. To support this process, the Center for Assistance to Entrepreneurs in Entering Foreign Financial Markets has been established at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry pursuant to the Presidential Decree. It was emphasized that now it is necessary to use this mechanism more actively to train and support entrepreneurs in attracting funds from abroad.

This year it is planned to implement projects worth $5.2 billion at the expense of resources of international financial institutions. An extraordinary headquarters headed by the Prime Minister will be created for the timely fulfillment of these works.

Projects worth $1.1 billion have been agreed with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and $1 billion with the Islamic Development Bank. Responsible persons have been instructed to expand cooperation with these banks on the basis of projects without state guarantees, as well as to provide entrepreneurs with the necessary support in attracting financing.

One of the most important indicators of investment efficiency is exports. For example, enterprises in free economic zones receive incentives based on the capital invested. This was supposed to help reduce production costs and enter foreign markets.

Last year, 589 enterprises operating in 22 free economic zones produced products worth 42 trillion soums. However, only 18 percent of goods were exported, and 372 enterprises did not supply their products abroad at all.

In this regard, it was noted that henceforth only free economic zones that are exclusively export-oriented will be created. Together with foreign brands it is planned to produce products with high added value that are in demand in foreign markets. One of the first such zones will be a textile cluster in Namangan region on an area of 30 hectares.

Another new approach is the transfer of 12 technoparks to foreign companies last year. So far, 27 projects worth $2.5 billion have been placed there. It is proposed to expand this experience and create several more technoparks with the participation of foreign companies.

This year it is planned to increase exports to more than $30 billion. For example, in such areas as textile and electrical industry, where we have our own raw material base, there are opportunities to increase exports by 2-3 times.

In this regard, measures will be taken to develop these two leading industries and provide comprehensive support to exporting enterprises.

In particular, a separate factoring organization will be created to provide exporters with working capital, and $100 million will be allocated to it. Up to $20,000 will be reimbursed to enterprises for bringing production in line with international certification requirements. Laboratory equipment for R&D centers will be exempted from customs duties. $2 million will be allocated to promote local products through international marketplaces.

Responsible persons have been instructed to analyze opportunities in foreign markets and develop a three-year export strategy.

Additional market mechanisms will also be introduced into cotton production and processing. From this year, clusters will put their cotton needs and price offers on the stock exchange, and farmers will choose the most favorable conditions and conclude futures contracts. Farmers who do not use soft loans and grow their own cotton will receive a subsidy of 10 percent of the exchange price of the cotton they sell. Those who repay the soft loans by December 31 will be able to get back 4 percent of the loan amount.

In addition, owners of homestead plots engaged in cultivation of agricultural products can become clients of banks.

At the end of the meeting, the Head of State once again emphasized the high competition in the world for investments and markets, demanded from responsible persons to strengthen business activity and achieve concrete results. It was noted that control and demand in this sphere will be strict.

The Prime Minister was instructed to approve a quarterly plan to ensure the inflow of $42 billion of foreign investments this year and ensure its fulfillment.

Reports of ministers, heads of industries and hokims were also heard at the meeting.

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Official visit to the UAE concludes



Events of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s official visit to the United Arab Emirates concluded.

In the framework of the program of stay in the Emirates’ capital the city of Abu Dhabi the leader of Uzbekistan held productive talks with the President of the UAE Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and meetings with the heads of prominent state organizations, companies and banks of this country. 

The talks resulted in the adoption of a solid package of bilateral documents, including the Declaration on the Establishment of Strategic Partnership.

The Head of our state also took part in the opening ceremonies of the International Summit “Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week” and the awarding of the Sheikh Zayed Sustainability Prize, as well as put forward a number of important initiatives at the plenary session of the summit.

Today in the city of Dubai, talks were held with Vice President, Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, Emir of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

At the end of the visit, the distinguished guest was accompanied at Dubai International Airport by Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, Chairman and CEO of Emirates Group, and Mohammad bin Abdullah Al Gergawi, UAE Minister of Government Affairs.

The Head of our state departed for Tashkent.

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President of Uzbekistan holds a meeting with the Vice-President, Prime Minister of the UAE



On January 15 in the framework of the official visit to the United Arab Emirates President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev held a meeting in Dubai with Vice-President, Prime Minister of the UAE Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. 

In the course of the meeting, the sides highly appreciated the fruitful results of the summit talks held today, which elevated the Uzbek-Emirati relations to the level of strategic partnership.

Active contacts and productive interaction in such spheres as enhancing the efficiency of public administration and training of managerial personnel have been noted with satisfaction.

An agreement was reached on developing and implementing new projects in the field of high technologies, digitalization, infrastructure development and other promising areas.

Interest was expressed in close cooperation with Emirati partners in the area of artificial intelligence in Uzbekistan.

Particular attention was paid to the introduction of Dubai’s advanced solutions in the sphere of urban development, including within the framework of creating a modern infrastructure in New Tashkent.

The sides agreed to continue active dialogue and build up full-scale cooperation in all areas of practical interaction.

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A Declaration on establishing a strategic partnership signed



Following the talks between the Presidents of Uzbekistan and the United Arab Emirates in Abu Dhabi, the following documents were signed:

– Declaration on the Establishment of Strategic Partnership;

– Intergovernmental Agreement on Mutual Promotion and Protection of Investments;

– Intergovernmental Agreement on Financial and Technical Cooperation;

– Agreement on cooperation in the field of standardization, metrology and conformity assessment;

– Interagency agreements on investment cooperation, cooperation in the fields of industry and advanced technologies, justice, agriculture and food security, in the field of minerals; 

– Protocol on Cooperation in the field of culture, Agreement on Cooperation between diplomatic academies and others.