Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 22 April, Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan Sardor Umurzakov gave an interview to a journalist of the Japanese Nikkei Inc. Satoshi Shimoda in Tokyo.

During the conversation, a wide range of issues were raised regarding the implementation of socio-economic reforms in Uzbekistan and the progress made in this direction, the measures taken to promote the investment and trade potential of the country in the international business community, the mechanisms being introduced to support the development of entrepreneurship, liberalization and diversification of trade, development digital infrastructure, as well as the elimination of barriers in tax and customs regulation.

Special attention was paid to the recently approved New Uzbekistan Development Strategy for 2022-2026 and its main priorities. Sardor Umurzakov spoke in detail about the principles of developing the Strategy, further actions for its practical implementation and expected results.

Plans were announced for the further modernization of the domestic industry and the transformation of key sectors of the economy, in particular, through the privatization of large state-owned enterprises and the active involvement of the private sector in the implementation of new projects. It was noted that the priority of reforming industries is to increase the competitiveness of the national economy and ensure its stable growth. In this context, the most promising and investment-capacious industries for Japanese investors were named: traditional and alternative energy, agriculture, food, textile, leather and footwear, silk, chemical and pharmaceutical industries, IT industry and healthcare.

The current state of Uzbek-Japanese cooperation in the areas of investment, trade, financial and technical, cultural and humanitarian cooperation was not spared. The dynamic nature of the development of bilateral relations was emphasized, a special impetus to which was given during the official visit of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan to Japan in December 2019. 

The head of the Uzbek delegation spoke about the successes achieved in cooperation in the political and inter-parliamentary spheres, major projects implemented jointly with Japanese partners, such as the Japan International Cooperation Agency, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation and large Japanese corporations. 

The Uzbek side voiced its continued readiness to deepen cooperation with Japan in all priority areas and provide comprehensive support to representatives of Japanese business in any matters related to their activities in Uzbekistan.