Mirziyoyev Reviews Higher Education and Science Reform Initiatives

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed proposals aimed at further developing Uzbekistan’s higher education, science, and innovation system.

In recent years, Uzbekistan has implemented wide-ranging reforms designed to expand access to higher education, improve its quality, strengthen scientific capacity, and enhance international cooperation. At the same time, there is a continuing need to optimize resource use, deepen the integration of science with the economy, and align educational processes with research activities.

The presentation outlined new initiatives to modernize the sector. A key program is “U10 – Flagship Universities of Global Level in Uzbekistan”, which will grant ten universities the status of national research universities through a competitive selection process, followed by the creation of scientific clusters.

Selection will consider faculty potential, positions in national and international rankings, scientific infrastructure, and funding levels. The clusters will operate as consortia involving domestic and foreign universities, research institutions, and industrial enterprises.

Each university awarded research status will receive up to 150 billion UZS from the Science Funding and Innovation Support Fund to establish a scientific cluster.

Concurrently, a results-oriented financing model will be introduced for higher education. Starting in 2027, universities’ funding will be tied to their positions in the national ranking. Performance evaluations will consider education quality, research output, international collaboration, digitalization, and graduate employment outcomes.

Updated approaches to determining state funding for student education will also be introduced, factoring in program complexity, labor market needs, university ranking, and regional considerations.

Scientific research funding will be reformed to allocate at least half of government program resources to priority areas. Project selection will involve international experts, scientific-technical councils, and industry representatives.

Initiatives include expanding commercialization of research through university spin-off companies, promoting the production of innovative products and services, technology transfer, and fostering entrepreneurial activity in academia.

To position Uzbekistan as a regional education hub, new mechanisms will attract international students. The “New Uzbekistan Scholarship” program will annually provide grants to up to 500 talented foreign students to study at state universities.

The presentation also covered improvements in governance, digital education, AI technologies, and youth innovation support.

The President emphasized the importance of careful planning and phased implementation to elevate Uzbekistan’s higher education and science system to a qualitatively new level. Relevant ministries and agencies were tasked with executing the initiatives.