Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 15 March, the Youth English Language Center officially opened in the Tong Yulduzi mahalla. The opening ceremony was attended by Chargé d’Affaires of the US Embassy in Uzbekistan Paul Politis, WIUT Rector Bakhrom Mirkasimov, Chairman of Tong Yulduzi mahalla Furkat Turaev, US Embassy staff, WIUT project coordinators, as well as students of the Youth Center and their parents.

The Youth English Language Center was established to teach English to students aged 7 to 18 from low-income families, strengthening community ties in the mahalla. Mahalla "Tong Yulduzi" is one of the three mahallas supported by WIUT in Mirabad district. 2022 has been declared in Uzbekistan as the "Year of Ensuring Human Interests and Development of the Mahalla".

“The US Embassy is pleased to support Westminster International University’s Youth English Language Center project in one of the mahallas of Tashkent with a small grant. The Embassy is helping to improve the speaking and teaching of English in Uzbekistan in a variety of ways, and this project is another creative way we can help people improve their English language skills,” said Chargé d’Affaires of the US Embassy, Paul Politis. We all know that helping students learn English will open the door to new economic and international opportunities in the years ahead.”

WIUT rector Bakhrom Mirkasimov noted that “WIUT has a strong corporate social responsibility program, which we are consistently implementing to support local communities (mahallas) located near the campus of our university in Tashkent. We are proud to promote educational initiatives and teach English to children who would otherwise not have this opportunity. We thank the US Embassy in Uzbekistan for trusting and cooperating with us in this project to develop the Tong Yulduzi mahalla.

The Youth Center in Mahalla started operations in January 2022, offering English lessons to the first group of 20 children. Classes are held from Monday to Friday by volunteers who are currently WIUT students. The long-term goal of the project is to increase the number of underprivileged children attending English courses.

The coordinators of the Youth English Language Center are Kholida Sabirova and Dildora Karimova, course leader and course instructor, respectively, in the field of Commercial Law at WIUT.

The US Embassy Small Grants Program for the Development and Promotion of English, which began in 2021, provides small grants for projects that further develop and improve the learning and teaching of the English language. Many organizations, institutions and educators have had the opportunity to receive grant funding.