Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 15 December, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev chaired a videoconference on improving energy supply to the regions and increasing employment.

In the beginning, the head of state dwelled on the problems with energy supply that have been observed in recent days. It was noted that over the past six years, more than 5,000 megawatts of new power generation capacities have been created. For comparison: over the previous 25 years, capacities of 3.5 thousand megawatts were put into operation.

Also, over the past six years, 45,000 kilometers of electrical networks and more than 13,000 transformers have been updated, which is 3-4 times more than in previous years. The volume of production of liquefied gas and coal increased by 1.5 times.

However, during the week of cold weather, it turned out that the responsible persons of the energy industry, khokims and sector leaders did not organize work at the grassroots level. The meeting sharply criticized the fact that even in the current difficult situation, cases of theft of electricity and gas continue.

At the meeting, disciplinary measures were taken against officials who allowed this state of affairs.

- The current situation in energy supply should be a good lesson for the leaders of the industry and regions. Enterprises of the sphere should not work in manual mode, but systematically. In all mahallas, people should be satisfied with their work, Shavkat Mirziyoyev said.

The First Deputy Prime Minister and energy leaders were instructed to switch to an emergency mode of operation within two months. The khokims of the regions were tasked with visiting heat supply enterprises and improving the quality of public services, reducing the consumption and loss of energy resources.

Issues of ensuring employment of the population and creating sources of income were discussed at the meeting.

It was noted that since the beginning of the year, 2 million people have been permanently employed in the areas of business, industry, agriculture and services. Also, more than 4 million people received income from seasonal work.

In the regions, the number of enterprises increased by 85 thousand, the total number reached 550 thousand. Due to this, in 2022 the number of officially employed, paying income tax increased by 400 thousand to 5 million 100 thousand people.

3.5 thousand projects have been implemented in industry, 160 thousand permanent jobs have been created. 175 thousand people received a source of income within the framework of 35 thousand micro-projects in mahallas, 135 thousand people - in the construction sector.

This year, as a result of creating opportunities for self-employment in 79 types of activities, 914,000 citizens have registered with this status. The total number of self-employed reached 2 million.

The meeting also analyzed shortcomings in the field of employment. In particular, this year the number of permanent jobs has decreased in Kitab, Kasan, Mirzaabad, Narpay, Nishan and Furkat districts. The number of employees at 232,000 enterprises operating in the private sector is indicated as 1 person. The volume of industrial production decreased in 15 districts. Of the 100 thousand hectares of land intended for distribution to the population, nothing is grown on 4 thousand hectares.

Based on this, a number of relevant tasks have been set for the khokims.

Discussing the tasks for the next year, the head of our state outlined four main areas.

The first direction is the distribution to the population of 100,000 hectares released from cotton and grain. Thanks to this, 600 thousand people can be provided with permanent work and 900 thousand people with seasonal work.

Over 600 projects for storage, sorting and processing of agricultural products will be implemented. $400 million raised from international financial institutions will be prioritized for those projects that will create more jobs.

In order to increase the interest of silk cocoon producers, this area will also be liberalized. From now on, cocoons will be purchased from the population at a price not lower than the cost on the world exchange. This will provide employment for at least 500 thousand people and increase their income by 2-3 times.

The second direction is the development of entrepreneurship. To do this, micro-centers will be created in a thousand mahallas with a high level of unemployment. 255 central and 274 intramahalla streets in the field will be turned into streets of trade and services. The auctioning of more than 3,000 land plots along the highways will also be a good opportunity for new jobs in the service sector.

In this regard, the task was set to realize free plots and facilities for doing business.

Within the framework of the third direction, the possibilities of industry will be involved. In particular, the implementation of 300 large projects worth 8 billion dollars and 1,300 projects worth 16 trillion soums in industrial zones will create high-paying jobs. 536 non-metallic deposits will be put up for auction and new enterprises in the building materials industry will be launched.

In general, investment projects and local industry can create a total of 320,000 permanent jobs.

The fourth direction is the construction industry. As part of all projects, it is planned to build 90,000 housing units next year. The President stressed the need to simplify labor contracts when hiring workers in the construction industry. This will attract workers in the informal sector to legal activities.

At the end of the meeting, the Deputy Prime Ministers, ministers and khokims presented information on the upcoming work in fulfillment of the tasks set.