Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) - In 2021, special attention will be paid to healthcare as another important area and priorities in this area, the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev said in his message to the Parliament.

First. The systematic continuation of the fight against the coronavirus pandemic will remain among our most important tasks in the coming year.

For this work, a reserve of 3 trillion soums has been formed in the state budget for 2021. These funds will also be used to vaccinate the population against coronavirus infection.

To improve the quality of work and improve the material and technical base of the sanitary-epidemiological service, the creation of modern laboratories, 200 million dollars will be allocated.

Taking into account the lessons learned during the pandemic, the scale of digitalization of the medical sector will be expanded. In particular, measures are envisaged to expand the range of remote services provided by medical institutions, to introduce electronic office work in polyclinics and hospitals. Communication based on telemedicine technologies will be established between the republican specialized centers and their local branches, and opportunities for diagnostics and treatment in the regions will be increased.

Second. Caring for the health of mothers and children is caring about the whole society, about our future.

Starting next year, children under 15 and pregnant women will receive 7 types of vitamins and medicines for parasitic diseases free of charge.

These measures will cover 11 million people in 2021 and 17 million in 2022, it is planned to allocate 100 billion soums for these purposes.

By providing women and children with free iodine, iron, folic acid, vitamins and antiparasitic drugs, we hope to reduce the incidence of anemia by 25 percent.

Third. In order to raise health care to a qualitatively new level, it is necessary to strengthen the primary health care, especially in villages and makhallas.

In this regard, instead of general practitioners in primary care institutions, the activity of medical teams will be organized, consisting of a family doctor and 5 assistants from among the nursing staff.

Each makhalla will have a separate system of work with children under 5 years old, women of fertile age and pregnant women, people with disabilities, as well as those at risk of cardiovascular, oncological, endocrine diseases.

At the same time, the list of free medical services and medicines provided by the state will be revised, a system of guaranteed provision of them to the population will be gradually established.

In addition, for an even wider coverage of the population with primary health care institutions, in the next 3 years, 315 points of family doctors and 85 family polyclinics will be opened.

Also, within the framework of the Rural Doctor program, more than a thousand doctors working in remote areas will receive financial assistance in the amount of 30 million soums and will be provided with service housing.

It is planned to involve private medical organizations in providing primary and specialized medical care in remote areas, conducting screening examinations of socially vulnerable groups of the population, with the provision of subsidies to them.

We will pay special attention to enhancing the authority and status of mid-level medical workers - nurses and paramedics. In particular, 47 technical schools named after Ibn Sino will annually graduate more than 20 thousand young specialists with professional skills in several areas of medicine at once. Mid-level health care workers will also be allowed to independently engage in “nursing activities”.

Fourth. Today more than 12 thousand of our citizens suffer from leukemia and severe hereditary hematological diseases.

In this regard, next year, it is planned to allocate 250 billion soums from the budget for complex diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in the field of oncohematology and intractable diseases.

For the first time, more than 5 thousand patients with acute renal failure will be covered by free hemodialysis services; for these purposes, 140 billion soums will be allocated from the budget. In addition, it is planned to create special departments for the diagnosis and treatment of endocrine diseases in regional hospitals. For this in 2021, 150 billion soums will be allocated from the budget.

We will establish 35 interdistrict centers for the treatment of chronic cardiovascular diseases, which affect a significant portion of our population. These centers will contribute to reducing mortality and disability by providing prompt and qualified medical care for heart attacks and strokes. This will save the lives of at least 30 thousand people a year.

Fifth. Further popularization of physical culture and sports is an important factor in ensuring the health of the population.

Next year, it is planned to allocate 100 billion soums for equipping 70 physical education and sports facilities, 16 thousand kindergartens and schools with sports equipment. Also, pedestrian and bicycle paths will appear in all regional centers and cities. 

Thanks to the widespread development of mass sports, in 2021 the proportion of the population constantly engaged in it will increase from 19 to 25 percent.

Speaking about sports, I want to emphasize that we are facing another important task.

The Asian Olympic Council recently decided to host the 2025 Asian Youth Games in Tashkent. Undoubtedly, this is evidence of the great trust placed in our country. At the same time, we all understand what a great responsibility this is. We must already begin thorough preparations for the competitions of continental importance.

Sixth. Special attention will be paid to issues of improving cultural and educational work.

420 billion soums will be allocated from the budget to enhance the activities of cultural and art institutions, to strengthen their material and technical base. In particular, 22 theaters and other cultural objects will be built and reconstructed in the regions.

Work will begin on the creation of a cultural and educational complex in the center of Tashkent, which will be formed by the National Academic Drama Theater, an art museum designed by the famous Japanese architect Tadao Ando, a modern library and an international art school named after Alisher Navoi.

In honor of the 30th anniversary of our country’s independence, the Istiklol complex will be erected in the center of the capital.

The previously held traditional Tashkent International Film Festival will revive under the name of the Tashkent International Film Festival "Pearl of the Silk Road".

Here I would like to dwell on one important issue.

We need to preserve and pass on to future generations the cultural heritage of our people. Currently, it includes more than 7 thousand objects. Unfortunately, the recent damage done to some of the invaluable properties is a sign of negligence in this matter. This work requires constant attention not only from the Ministry of Culture, but also local khokimiyats, makhallas, the media and the general public.

Within a month, the government should adopt a special program for the registration, preservation and protection of cultural heritage sites.