Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — The development of a circular economy offers new opportunities for technological cooperation between Uzbekistan, China and other Central Asian countries, according to Bakhtiyor Mustafayev, deputy director of the Institute for Strategic and Regional Studies under the President of Uzbekistan (ISRS).
Mustafayev outlined the opportunities at the sixth China-Central Asia Think Tank Forum, held in Bishkek on 22–23 October 2026 under the theme “High-Quality Development and Joint Modernisation”.
The forum was organised by the Institute of Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the National Institute for Strategic Initiatives under the President of Kyrgyzstan. It brought together representatives of leading analytical and research centres from China and the five Central Asian countries.
The Uzbek delegation included experts from ISRS, the Academy of Public Policy and Administration under the President of Uzbekistan, and the International Institute for Central Asia.
Participants discussed prospects for joint modernisation, transport and digital connectivity, deeper industrial cooperation and the introduction of artificial intelligence. They also addressed human capital development and expanded humanitarian cooperation.
Speaking at a panel on the circular economy, Mustafayev highlighted opportunities for Central Asian countries and China to cooperate in waste processing and resource reuse. In his assessment, joint recycling facilities could create added value and new jobs within the region.
He noted that Uzbekistan was already developing conditions for closer cooperation in this area. A specialised agency has been established, private-sector participation in waste management is growing, and a portfolio of projects to build 11 waste-to-energy plants is being developed. Chinese technology companies are key partners in these projects.
Turning to the wider region, Mustafayev said Central Asia generates around 25 million tonnes of municipal solid waste annually. However, the relatively small size of national markets makes it difficult for each country to establish a complete recycling cycle for every type of complex waste.
He identified cross-border value chains as a promising solution. Under this approach, the collection and initial processing of recyclable materials in Central Asian countries would be complemented by advanced processing at specialised technology centres.
According to Mustafayev, combining Central Asia’s resource base with China’s technology and experience could help develop such cooperation.
He outlined three priority areas for advancing the initiative.
The first is to expand exports of standardised secondary raw materials from Central Asia to China. Mustafayev said this would involve processed materials that meet Chinese requirements. The growing use of electric vehicles, batteries and digital equipment in the region makes it increasingly important to develop recycling capacity and establish reliable sales channels for recovered materials.
The second priority is to establish joint ventures to recycle and process renewable energy equipment. Mustafayev said the rapid expansion of solar and wind power generation required countries to prepare in advance for the disposal and recycling of equipment at the end of its service life. Cooperation with Chinese partners could help recover silicon, silver and polymers from decommissioned solar panels for reuse in manufacturing.
The third priority is to develop joint educational programmes to train specialists in the circular economy. He said Uzbekistan’s potential partner could be Green University, the Central Asian University for Environmental and Climate Change, which offers a specialised master’s programme in the field.
Mustafayev emphasised that training qualified specialists would help supply new facilities with skilled personnel and lay the foundation for long-term cooperation in the sector.
