Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) - On 9 January 2020, during the visit of the delegation of the Agency for Information and Mass Communication of Uzbekistan to France, a meeting was held between the first deputy director of the Agency for the Development of Presidential, Creative and Specialized Schools under the Cabinet of Ministers of Uzbekistan Nazima Fayzibaeva and UNESCO Deputy Director General for Education Stefania Giannini.

The representative of UNESCO welcomed the current positive dynamics in relations between Uzbekistan and UNESCO, in particular, in the educational field, which received a powerful impetus following the meetings of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev with the Director General of the Organization Audrey Azoulay in Paris and Samarkand.

“UNESCO attaches great importance to expanding cooperation with the Uzbek side to support the leadership’s of Uzbekistan wide-ranging reforms in the education system, Stefania Giannini said. “We express UNESCO’s readiness to mobilize the accumulated expertise and other resources to improve the quality of preschool, secondary, special and higher education in the Republic of Uzbekistan, which also contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 in the field of education in your country.”

The deputy general director said that UNESCO has now begun a comprehensive study and analysis of the available resources and needs of educational institutions in Uzbekistan to develop targeted project proposals through the Organization.

“UNESCO is ready to implement projects to assist the Agency for the Development of Presidential, Creative and Specialized Schools aimed at improving the quality of education by improving the school administration system, developing curricula that meet international standards, and others,” said Stefania Giannini.

It was also noted that in Uzbekistan it is possible to introduce the experience of several Gulf countries with which UNESCO has implemented projects to support schools specializing in the training of gifted children. She requested to provide, as soon as possible, information on the areas of the Agency in which the Organization can assist, the needs and financial aspects of cooperation with UNESCO to develop specific targeted projects in this direction.

Following the meeting, an agreement was reached on a detailed discussion of this issue, possibly within the framework of the upcoming visit of the Deputy Director General of UNESCO to Uzbekistan in March this year.

Stefania Giannini also invited the Uzbek side to consider joining the Global Convention on the Recognition of Higher Education Qualifications, adopted by the UNESCO General Conference in November 2019. She emphasized that ratification by the Republic of Uzbekistan of this document is of particular importance in terms of ensuring support for all regions and its early entry into force. For its part, Uzbekistan can also widely take advantage of this document.