Uzbekistan to establish National Institute for Mahalla Development

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed a comprehensive presentation dedicated to the large-scale digitalization of the mahalla system, the introduction of artificial intelligence technologies into their activities, and the creation of the National Institute for Mahalla Development.

Within the framework of the current Year of Development of the Mahalla and the Whole Society, systematic work has been deployed in the country aimed at eradicating poverty, developing business activity, and fundamentally updating local infrastructure.

According to the approved targets, the country plans to provide permanent jobs for 1 million citizens, completely lift 181,000 families out of poverty, and reduce the overall unemployment and poverty rates in the country to 4.5% by the end of the year. Special emphasis is placed on supporting 37 struggling districts and 915 mahallas with limited financial resources.

For the modernization of their infrastructure, 12 trillion soums have been allocated from the republican budget. Furthermore, through coordinated subsidies from the central and regional budgets, local councils and khokimiyats received an additional 4 trillion soums to provide targeted solutions to local problems.

To form a sustainable financial base for the mahallas themselves, the state is creating additional sources of income volume of 300 billion soums, and an additional 200 billion soums have been allocated to the Republican Mahalla Fund. Now, a portion of the fines collected for environmental and construction violations committed on their territory will flow directly into the budgets of citizens' assemblies. Additionally, the share of land and property tax revenues left at the disposal of mahallas will increase from 10% to 15%.

Together with income generated from leasing vacant spaces, these funds will be specifically directed toward repairing internal roads, creating children's and sports playgrounds, and constructing sidewalks and local parks. In parallel, vocational training and social rehabilitation programs are being launched for 245,000 citizens.

The key vector of modernization will be the full launch of the Digital Mahalla platform, which will connect the information systems of 35 relevant ministries and departments. This will allow for the real-time processing of problems identified during door-to-door surveys conducted by the mahalla sevens, which have already recorded appeals from 1.365 million citizens.

Moreover, the integration of artificial intelligence technologies will allow the system to preemptively model and identify the most acute pockets of social tension in each location. In cooperation with commercial banks, an individual portfolio of business initiatives and investment projects will be formed for each mahalla.

The scientific foundation of the reform will be provided by the newly created National Institute for Mahalla Development, which will operate in close cooperation with the Academy of Public Administration. The new analytical center will study reforms, accumulate advanced experience, and develop practical recommendations for the mahalla sevens. It is expected that 21,000 workers in the sector will upgrade their qualifications at the institute annually.

At the conclusion of the presentation, the issue of updating the material and technical base was raised, noting that 99 mahallas currently do not have their own buildings, and a number of facilities have been declared unsafe. The President fully supported an initiative by entrepreneurs to build new, modern complexes for citizens' assemblies on the basis of public-private partnerships (PPP).

In such facilities, premises for the mahalla sevens will be provided free of charge, while investors can allocate the remaining space for service points and mini-workshops, creating new jobs for local residents. The head of state approved all the proposed measures and gave strict instructions to the responsible officials for their immediate implementation.