IFC Vice-President holds talks at Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade of Uzbekistan hosted a meeting with a delegation of International Finance Corporation (IFC) led by Georgina Baker, IFC Vice-President for Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe and Central Asia.

On 18 February 2019, Country Private Sector Diagnostic for Uzbekistan was presented within the visit of the IFC delegation to Uzbekistan.

The sides discussed issues of realization of projects in Uzbekistan at participation of IFC. The sides considered a project on construction and management of photoelectric station with the capacity of 100 megawatts in Navoi region, agreement on consulting services, signed during visit of the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Washington in May 2018.

Country Private Sector Diagnostics provide in-depth analysis and offer recommendations for leveraging private sector solutions to achieve development objectives.

The Country Private Sector Diagnostic for Uzbekistan identified a strategy for creating markets in these sectors, which currently face significant modernization and investment needs. Prepared in close consultation with the government and private sector stakeholders, the report, Creating Markets in Uzbekistan, highlights that attracting investment to these sectors’ currently dominated by state-owned enterprises’ will require regulatory reforms, increased competition and efficiency, and greater government capacity.

The report includes tools and recommendations on expanding share of private sector in sustainable economic growth of Uzbekistan.

In civil aviation sector, it is offered to de-regulate and restructure main activities of air transportation with creation of separate bodies, responsible for security, policy, etc.

In the ICT sector, the state regulation, modernization of legal documents and functions of control should be solved. It is also offered to provide and equal access to last kilometer infrastructure of Uzbektelecom.

IFC believes that chemical industry can be flagship in conducting progressive reforms. It is proposed to introduce international state and private standards, certification of exported fruits and vegetables in the agriculture sector.