On July 1 this year, the President of Uzbekistan watched a presentation of plans in the field of digital technologies, artificial intelligence, and telecommunications.
The number of residents of the IT park of Uzbekistan has exceeded 2800, and the number of foreign companies has reached 752. About 40 thousand young people earn high incomes in this area.
Over the past 5 years, the industry’s exports have grown from $170 million to almost $1 billion.
In 2024, startups attracted $70 million in venture capital investment.
As a result, Uzbekistan has risen 12 positions and entered the top 100 of the global ranking of startup ecosystems. The country also moved up 17 positions in the international AI readiness index, ranking first in Central Asia.
Uzbekistan topped the ranking of CIS countries in terms of the growth rate of the telecommunications industry.
Work in this area is ongoing. In particular, the following goals are set for the next year:
As part of the implementation of these goals, a number of draft regulatory documents have been developed and discussed during the presentation.
To date, 760 types of public services have been digitized. Last year, 10 million citizens used digital services.
Shavkat Mirziyoyev noted that it is time to move on to the next stage – building a Digital Government. First of all, digitalization should cover the most popular areas: education, healthcare, construction, and utilities.
Special attention was paid to the development of artificial intelligence technologies. According to the Presidential Decree of October 14, 2024, the AI development strategy until 2030 was approved. USD 50 million has been allocated for the development of infrastructure in this area.
The goal is to create a national model of artificial intelligence and train 1 million specialists.
The Minister of Digital Technologies reported on the current stages of this task and measures to improve the infrastructure.
Expanding the scope of digital services and export potential remains a priority. So far, the main indicators are concentrated in Tashkent, but thanks to the conditions and benefits created in the country, interest from foreign specialists and companies is growing.
In this context, the President emphasized the importance of creating an attractive environment in each region in order to more actively attract foreign IT companies and stimulate the development of the digital economy throughout the country.
On July 4, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan took part in the 17th summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), which was held in Khankendi under the chairmanship of the President of Azerbaijan.
The summit was attended by heads of state and government of SCO member states, including Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, as well as representatives of Afghanistan, international organizations, and business circles of the region.
The participants discussed prospects for deepening multilateral cooperation and exchanged views on key issues on the international and regional agenda.
At the beginning of his speech, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev outlined the current challenges to security and sustainable development, reaffirmed his commitment to the peaceful settlement of conflicts, and stressed the importance of a just settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli issue. Among the new initiatives put forward are:
• Adoption of the concept of “Strategic Goals of Economic Partnership – 2035,” which focuses on digitalization, innovation, and artificial intelligence.
• Holding a meeting of trade ministers on ECO issues in Tashkent to discuss strategic issues and prepare an agreement on trade facilitation.
• Creation of a system of “green corridors” for the rapid exchange of information and unhindered trade in agricultural products.
• Development of a long-term Ecoinvest program to stimulate private and international investment in sustainable projects in the region.
• Forming alternative transport corridors, in particular, developing the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway with further connection to the Trans-Afghan Corridor.
• Accelerating the creation of a Digital Transport and Customs Office to coordinate the digitalization of logistics.
• Holding an ECO national airline forum in Samarkand to stimulate air transport, tourism, and marketing cooperation in the aviation sector.
• Developing a roadmap for expanding tourism services aimed at doubling tourist flows within the ECO.
• Creation of a cross-border “green program” for the restoration of ecosystems in desert areas with an emphasis on afforestation and the development of recreation.
• Preparation of proposals for reforming the EAEU to enhance its effectiveness and authority in the international arena.
In conclusion, the President of Uzbekistan expressed his confidence that the summit would give new impetus to economic cooperation and open a stage of meaningful transformation of regional partnership.
Full text of the speech by the President of Uzbekistan
The international news portal Euronews published an article entitled “More trees, more tools: Uzbekistan intensifies efforts to restore the Aral Sea and support green business“. The material is devoted to the current environmental issues that Uzbekistan presented at the Eco Expo Central Asia 2025 exhibition.
The article discusses two key initiatives presented by the Uzbek authorities. The first is the expansion of environmental projects in Karakalpakstan, the region most affected by the drying up of the Aral Sea. In recent years, more than 2 million hectares have been planted on the dried-up bottom of the former sea. Now, in addition to reforestation, the emphasis will be on biosaline farming, sustainable agriculture, and rational water use.
The second important area is the launch of a national green certification system to help small and medium-sized businesses implement environmentally sustainable technologies. According to the Minister of Ecology Aziz Abdukhakimov, this will open up access to green financing, international grants and soft loans, thus changing the attitude of entrepreneurs to environmental standards.
The article also quotes the opinion of the UN Resident Coordinator in Uzbekistan, Sabine Mal, who welcomed the initiatives and called the Aral Sea restoration program an example of environmental restoration of global importance.
The Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On additional measures to stimulate the attraction of foreign direct private investment” has been adopted.
The document is aimed at further improving the investment climate, supporting privatization processes, modernizing production facilities, and creating new jobs, especially in regions with excessive labor force.
According to the Decree, enterprises established with the involvement of foreign direct investment and operating in priority industries are entitled to tax incentives for a period of
The benefits apply to all cities and rural settlements of the republic, except for Tashkent city and Tashkent region. At the same time, these restrictions do not apply to companies operating in the tourism and waste management sectors.
Particular attention is paid to the industries to which these incentives apply. The list includes, in particular
production of radio electronics and components, light and silk industry, manufacture of construction materials, food and meat and dairy industries, chemical and medical industries, machine building, tourism, and waste management.
Uzbekistan is preparing a law on alternative investment funds. This was announced by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on June 10 during the plenary session of the Tashkent International Investment Forum .
According to the head of state, alternative financing instruments are actively developing in the country, primarily venture capital.
“Last year, the valuation of two national start-ups, Uzum and TBC, exceeded $1 billion for the first time. We intend to significantly increase the number of such companies,” the president said.
In this regard, a draft law has been prepared that will allow the volume of venture capital and other forms of alternative investment to reach $1 billion over the next five years.
At the same time, structural changes will be introduced in the banking system, insurance, finance, and the capital market. In particular, the country plans to establish a Financial Stability Council, and specialized platforms aimed at developing financial technologies and cybersecurity will be launched at the Central Bank.
To stimulate the industry, three venture capital funds with a total capital of $50 million have already been created.
According to a study of the Central Asian venture market conducted by RISE Research in collaboration with KPMG, by the end of 2024, total venture capital investment in the region reached approximately $95 million, up 7% from the previous year.
Uzbekistan showed one of the highest growth rates in the region, increasing 2.7 times from $6.3 million to $17.5 million. The number of venture deals in the country also increased to 38 per year (compared to 34 in 2023 and 24 in 2022). The average investment amount more than doubled, from $204,000 to $460,000.
In terms of the number of startups (over 400) and active investors (over 25), Uzbekistan ranks second in Central Asia, behind only Kazakhstan, which has about 1,000 startups and over 50 investors.
According to the April report of the World Gold Council, Uzbekistan has once again become the world leader in gold sales.
In April 2025, total gold purchases by central banks worldwide amounted to 12 tons, which is 12% less than in March and significantly below the average for the last 12 months (28 tons). This is the second consecutive month of decline in purchases.
WGC experts believe that the decline in demand may be linked to record gold prices recorded at the beginning of the year. Although central banks usually adhere to a long-term strategy, the rise in the price of gold may have temporarily reduced interest in active purchases.
The largest purchase in April was made by the National Bank of Poland, which increased its reserves by 12 tons to 509 tons. This exceeded the European Central Bank’s reserves of 507 tons. In total, Poland has purchased 61 tons of gold since the beginning of the year.
Other notable buyers included the central banks of the Czech Republic (+3 tons), China (+2 tons), Turkey (+2 tons), Kyrgyzstan (+2 tons), Kazakhstan (+1 ton), and Jordan (+1 ton).
Amid general caution in the gold market, the Central Bank of Uzbekistan continued to sell off its reserves, selling another 11 tons in April. Thus, for the third month in a row, the republic has maintained its position as the largest seller of the precious metal. Since the beginning of the year, gold reserves have decreased by 26 tons to 356 tons.
Uzbekistan retains its status as the largest gold exporter in 2025.
As of May 1, the country’s total gold and foreign exchange reserves reached $49.25 billion, equivalent to 15 months of imports. At the same time, foreign exchange reserves exceed $11 billion.
