Our People > Sadokat Jalolova

Sadokat Jalolova

Journalist

Jalolova has worked as a reporter for some time in local newspapers and websites in Uzbekistan, and has enriched her knowledge in the field of journalism through courses at the University of Michigan, Johns Hopkins University, and the University of Amsterdam on the Coursera platform.

Articles

Nobel Prize in Literature

Uzbek Writer Hamid Ismailov Appears in Bookmakers’ Odds for 2026 Nobel Prize

British bookmaker Ladbrokes gives Uzbek writer Hamid Ismailov odds of 33/1 for the 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature. The Ladbrokes list also includes Haruki Murakami, Margaret Atwood, Salman Rushdie, Stephen King, and J.K. Rowling. Bookmakers’ odds, however, have no connection to the Nobel Prize’s official nomination process. Details of nominations are kept secret for 50 years, and the literature laureate is selected by the Swedish Academy. The 2026 laureate will be announced on October 8. This year’s Nobel Prize carries an award of 12 million Swedish kronor, or about $1.2 million. Ismailov was born in 1954 in Tokmok, in what is now Kyrgyzstan, and grew up in Uzbekistan. He was forced to flee Uzbekistan in 1992 after coming under pressure from the government of then-President Islam Karimov over his writing and political views. His works were subsequently banned in the country. He settled in the United Kingdom and went on to work for the BBC World Service for 25 years. Ismailov writes principally in Uzbek and Russian. His international profile has grown through English translations of novels including The Railway, The Dead Lake, and The Underground. His novel The Devils’ Dance, translated from Uzbek by Donald Rayfield with John Farndon and published by Tilted Axis Press, won the EBRD Literature Prize in 2019. In 2025, Ismailov’s We Computers: A Ghazal Novel, translated from Uzbek by Shelley Fairweather-Vega and published by Yale University Press, was named a finalist for the U.S. National Book Award for Translated Literature. The novel draws on Persian poetic traditions and literary history to explore artificial intelligence. Its story centers on a French poet and his Uzbek translator, who experiment with a computer program capable of analyzing and generating literary texts. The Nobel Prize in Literature, first awarded in 1901, went to Hungarian writer László Krasznahorkai in 2025.

3 weeks ago

AIIB

AIIB and Uzbekistan Agree on $5 Billion Infrastructure Project Pipeline

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and Uzbekistan have agreed on a pipeline of potential infrastructure projects worth up to $5 billion for 2026-2029. The two sides also signed a $1.5 million grant agreement to help prepare a project to modernize the country’s electricity transmission network. The updated Multi-Year Rolling Pipeline (MYRP) was signed on the sidelines of the AIIB’s 11th Annual Meeting in Doha. The document identifies areas for potential financing through 2029. The $5 billion figure represents a pipeline of prospective investments, rather than loans already approved by the bank. Uzbekistan is a founding member of the AIIB and is the bank’s largest partner in Central Asia, accounting for 51% of its operations in the region, according to Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade. Tashkent is seeking to expand cooperation on cross-border transport, energy, and water projects, while bringing more private capital into infrastructure development. The AIIB also agreed to provide a $1.5 million grant to help prepare the electricity transmission project. The funding will support technical studies, assessments of investment needs and climate risks, and preparations for integrating new solar and wind power plants into the grid. The work will focus on the southern energy corridor between the Surkhandarya and Samarkand regions and on the Fergana Valley. The studies are intended to identify bottlenecks in the transmission network and options for increasing its capacity. Grid modernization is becoming one of the key challenges in Uzbekistan’s energy transition. The government says renewable energy accounted for around 30% of electricity generation in 2025 and aims to raise the share to 54% by 2030. Connecting additional generating capacity will require both an expansion of the high-voltage transmission network and improvements in its reliability. As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia, Uzbekistan plans to commission more than 17 GW of additional renewable energy capacity and build around 6,000 kilometers of high-voltage transmission lines by 2030. The expansion of green generation is becoming increasingly important as domestic gas production declines: Uzbekistan, once a net gas exporter, became a net importer in 2023.

3 weeks ago

Child protection

Uzbekistan Considers Life Imprisonment for Child Sexual Offenses

Uzbekistan is considering life imprisonment for rape and certain other violent sexual offenses involving children under the age of 14. A bill introducing this penalty and other measures to protect minors has passed its first reading in the lower house of parliament. The Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis approved the bill on September 29. It proposes lengthy prison terms or life imprisonment for these offenses. Under current law, the rape of a child under 14 is punishable by 15 to 20 years in prison. The proposed amendments would also eliminate certain limitation periods for sexual offenses against children, preventing offenders from avoiding criminal liability or punishment because the prescribed period has expired. During the parliamentary debate, lawmaker Gulrukh Agzamova said 445 criminal cases involving the rape of children under 14 had been opened in Uzbekistan between 2022 and 2025. Under the proposed changes, questioning of child victims would be video-recorded, while face-to-face confrontations between a child and a suspect or defendant would be conducted under a special procedure. If someone close to the child is suspected of violence, additional safeguards would apply. A guardian or a state body responsible for protecting the child’s rights and interests would then be required to participate in the investigation and court proceedings. Child victims and minor witnesses would also be provided with state-funded legal assistance. The bill was debated amid public outrage over a case involving the alleged sexual assault of a five-year-old girl at a state kindergarten in the Uchqurgan district of the eastern Namangan region. The case has revived debate over the death penalty in Uzbekistan. On September 27, Saida Mirziyoyeva, head of the Presidential Administration, called for capital punishment for such crimes. The death penalty is prohibited by Uzbekistan’s Constitution, meaning its reinstatement would require a constitutional amendment. The push for tougher penalties, however, predates the high-profile case in Namangan. Uzbekistan’s Strategy for Protecting Children from All Forms of Violence for 2026-2030 includes proposals to increase penalties for sexual crimes against children under 14, up to life imprisonment. Following its first reading, the bill will continue through the parliamentary process.

3 weeks ago

FIDE Chess Olympiad

Uzbekistan Wins FIDE Chess Olympiad Gold on Home Soil in Samarkand

Uzbekistan has won the Open section of the 46th FIDE Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, claiming its second title after its breakthrough victory in Chennai in 2022. The hosts entered the final round with 18 match points, one ahead of defending champions India. Uzbekistan defeated Ukraine 2.5-1.5 to finish with 20 points, while India drew 2-2 with Hungary. India’s draw meant Uzbekistan had secured gold even before its match against Ukraine had finished. India and Germany both finished on 18 points, with India taking silver on tiebreak and Germany bronze. Mukhiddin Madaminov delivered the decisive win on board four against Ukraine, while the other three games ended in draws. [caption id="attachment_57312" align="aligncenter" width="1774"] Uzbekistan’s players during the final round of the Chess Olympiad in Samarkand. Image: FIDE[/caption] Uzbekistan won its first seven matches before Germany handed the hosts their only defeat of the tournament, 2.5-1.5, in Round 8. The team responded by beating the United States, the top seed in the Open section, in Round 9, before defeating Armenia 3.5-0.5 in the penultimate round. The winning squad consisted of Javokhir Sindarov, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Nodirbek Yakubboev, Shamsiddin Vokhidov, and Mukhiddin Madaminov, with former FIDE world champion Rustam Kasimdzhanov serving as captain. Four of the five players had also been part of Uzbekistan’s gold medal team in Chennai in 2022. “The most important thing is how much attention is being paid to chess in our country,” Kasimdzhanov said at the Olympiad’s final press conference. He credited support from the president and prime minister with giving the team the conditions it needed to prepare and compete. Kasimdzhanov also pointed to the relationship among the players as an important factor in the team’s performance. “Such unity does not exist in every team. We are together, we are friends, and that helps us.” Preparations, he added, extended to details beyond the chessboard. “We did everything we could. We left nothing to chance,” he said. “Considering how important this tournament was, we carefully thought through even the smallest details.” The Samarkand victory extends Uzbekistan’s run of medals at three consecutive Olympiads: gold in Chennai in 2022, bronze in Budapest in 2024, and gold again in Samarkand. Abdusattorov also won the individual gold medal on board one in Samarkand, posting a performance rating of 2869. Kazakhstan won silver in the women’s competition after drawing 2-2 with Poland in the final round. China took gold, while India claimed bronze on tiebreak. The competition ran from September 16 to 27, following the opening ceremony on September 15. Before the tournament, FIDE said a record 400 teams had registered across the two main competitions, with 208 in the Open section and 192 in the Women’s section, surpassing the previous record set in Budapest in 2024. The home victory also came days after Uzbekistan increased financial rewards for its leading chess players. Under Presidential Resolution No. PP-346, adopted on September 21, gold at the senior World Chess Olympiad or Chess Paralympiad carries a one-time award of $200,000 for each player. The corresponding...

3 weeks ago

Counter-Terrorism

Uzbek-U.S. Citizen Extradited from Georgia on Charges of Supporting ISIS and al-Nusrah Front

Davud Ansariy, an Uzbek citizen who is also a naturalized U.S. citizen, has been extradited from Georgia to New York. U.S. prosecutors accuse him of leading a network that raised money to support ISIS and the al-Nusrah Front and helped aspiring fighters travel to Syria. Ansariy, 41, also known as Kozimjon Gafurov and Kozim, was arrested in Tbilisi in August 2026 and extradited to the United States on September 23. He faces one count of conspiracy to provide material support and one count of providing and attempting to provide material support to ISIS and the al-Nusrah Front, both designated by the United States as foreign terrorist organizations at the time of the alleged conduct. If convicted, he faces up to 35 years in prison. The alleged conduct dates back more than a decade. According to prosecutors, Ansariy led a group based primarily in Brooklyn whose members either planned to travel to Syria to join ISIS or the al-Nusrah Front or helped finance such trips. Participants referred to the group as “chayxona,” an Uzbek word meaning “tea house” or “tea party.” Prosecutors allege that money collected through the network was used to pay for the travel of aspiring fighters to Syria and to support families left behind by those who traveled there, as well as the families of those killed while fighting. According to prosecutors, these collections helped finance the travel of at least three people to Syria in 2013. All three are believed to have been killed there. Investigators also link the network to Akhror Saidakhmetov, who was arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport on February 25, 2015, while attempting to board a flight to Istanbul. According to court filings, the “chayxona” collections raised money for Saidakhmetov’s planned journey. He later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Ansariy left the United States for Turkey in May 2016, buying a one-way ticket the day before his departure. He left five days after one of his alleged co-conspirators was arrested on May 11 and did not return to the United States until his extradition this month. A federal grand jury in Brooklyn indicted Ansariy in November 2021. Georgian authorities arrested him after he traveled from Uzbekistan to Tbilisi in August 2026. Ansariy pleaded not guilty on September 24 and was held without bail, the New York Post reported.

3 weeks ago

ICT Week Uzbekistan 2026

Golden Gate Ventures Plans Two-Year Program for Central Asian Startups in Uzbekistan

Singapore-based venture capital firm Golden Gate Ventures plans to launch a two-year program in Uzbekistan for 20 startup founders from across Central Asia, giving them access to mentors and the fund’s international network. Michael Lints, MENA founding partner at Golden Gate Ventures, announced the initiative during ICT Week Uzbekistan 2026, held in Tashkent from September 22 to 25. The program will be launched with IT Park Uzbekistan, while details of the application and selection process are expected later. Lints told The Times of Central Asia that Golden Gate Ventures had also opened an office in Tashkent in June and now plans to invest in Uzbek startups. “We have strong confidence in the potential of your country, the startup founders we are meeting here, and the companies they are building,” he said. “Last year, IT Park invited us, and one year later, we have our own office here.” The two-year program will connect the selected founders with Golden Gate Ventures’ network in Asia, the Middle East, the United States, and Europe. Lints said the fund sees Uzbekistan developing into an important startup center in Central Asia. Startups featured prominently at ICT Week this year. The event was promoted under the “Land of Startups” concept, with more than 50 startups presenting their products to investors and potential partners. ICT Week’s official program also brought venture investors, including Golden Gate Ventures, Gobi Partners, 500 Global, SparkLabs, and other funds to its Startup & Venture Summit. Farrukh Erkinov, Director of Startup and Venture Ecosystem Development at IT Park Uzbekistan, told TCA that the number of international investors and startup organizations attending events in Tashkent has changed considerably in recent years. “A conversation at a stand can later turn into an order, while a presentation can become an investment partnership,” Erkinov said. “A team that has created a product can meet, right here, the people who can help them develop it.” [caption id="attachment_57199" align="aligncenter" width="1774"] Alif, an international fintech company in Central Asia with projects in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Pakistan, has a banner where visitors write their names or the names of their projects; image: ТСА[/caption] Among the regional participants was AI Academy from Kyrgyzstan. Product manager Emir Satykenov said the academy trains students in data engineering, data analytics, data science, machine learning, and AI engineering. According to Satykenov, more than 1,000 students have studied at the academy, while its wider AI community includes more than 2,500 people. Some courses are free, including programs for women and people who cannot afford tuition, with grants provided by Kyrgyzstan’s High Technology Park. The academy is also connected with Kyrgyz AI Research, whose developers are building open-source AI models for Kyrgyz, Kazakh, and other Central Asian languages. “Our AI model can work in Kazakh, Kyrgyz, and other Central Asian languages,” Satykenov said. “We also have an LLM model for text-to-text and image generation, and we are creating many open-source models in Kyrgyzstan.” [caption id="attachment_57201" align="aligncenter" width="1774"] The Huawei exhibition stand at ICT Week Uzbekistan 2026. Image: TCA[/caption] Elsewhere...

3 weeks ago

Child protection

Uzbekistan Kindergarten Case Over Alleged Assault Prompts Calls for Tougher Penalties

Authorities in Uzbekistan are investigating the alleged sexual assault of a five-year-old girl at a state kindergarten in the Namangan region. The suspect has been detained, while the case has prompted a wider debate over tougher penalties for sexual crimes against children. The alleged assault occurred at a kindergarten in Uchkurgan district. Police opened a criminal case on September 12 under two provisions of the Criminal Code, one covering the rape of a child under 14 and the other covering a threat to kill or use violence. The suspect, identified as K.M., worked as the kindergarten’s head of maintenance and was detained the same day. A court later ordered him held in custody. The Children’s Ombudsman requested a safety review from the Ministry of Preschool and School Education, prompting checks on staff at state kindergartens across the country. On September 27, Saida Mirziyoyeva, head of the Presidential Administration, said the death penalty should apply to such crimes. Capital punishment is prohibited under Article 25 of Uzbekistan’s Constitution, meaning its restoration would require a constitutional amendment. “In my view, the death penalty should indeed be applied for such brutal crimes. Unfortunately, the current law does not provide for the highest form of punishment,” Mirziyoyeva wrote. She said proposals were being prepared to amend legislation to make penalties for such crimes as severe as possible. The Children’s Ombudsman has proposed life imprisonment for serious sexual crimes against children, including rape, in a special report submitted to parliament. The ombudsman cited Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, where life sentences are available for certain sexual offenses against children. Kazakhstan introduced the penalty for some such crimes, while Kyrgyzstan’s Criminal Code allows it for the rape of a child under 14. Human rights activist Abdurakhmon Tashanov, head of the Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan Ezgulik, cautioned against interpreting Mirziyoyeva’s remarks as the beginning of a campaign to restore capital punishment. “Those who interpret Saida Mirziyoyeva’s words as a proposal to restore the death penalty in Uzbekistan are somewhat mistaken. The death penalty will not be reinstated,” he wrote. Tashanov nevertheless supported tougher punishment for sexual crimes against children and called for parliament to consider additional measures, including castration. The National Agency for Social Protection is providing assistance to the girl and her mother. Shakhnoza Mirziyoyeva, the agency’s first deputy director, said psychologists and other specialists have been working with the family. The agency will arrange for the family to move to another city and receive housing, rehabilitation, and social support. It will assist the girl’s mother with education and employment and, if necessary, with changing the family’s surname. The investigation is continuing, and authorities have urged the public not to circulate unverified information or details that could reveal the child’s identity.

3 weeks ago

ICT Week Uzbekistan 2026

What We Found at ICT Week Uzbekistan: Startups, Robots and the Next Wave of Digital Innovation

ICT Week Uzbekistan 2026 filled Tashkent’s Central Asian Expo with everything from biometric payment systems and health-monitoring AI to experimental satellites and drone football. Held from September 22 to 25, the annual technology event brought together more than 300 exhibitors from 51 countries, according to the organizers. Walking through the exhibition, The Times of Central Asia spoke with developers and startup founders from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan about the latest generation of Central Asian tech products, and attempts to bring engineering education beyond the region’s largest cities. [video width="1920" height="1080" mp4="https://timesca.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/document_5309977585415922252.mp4"][/video] Paying with a Palm or a Smile At the BRB Tech stand, the Uzbek fintech company demonstrated products that it has developed for the banking sector, including biometric payment systems that use a customer’s palm or face. The idea is straightforward: instead of taking out a card or phone at a shop or coffee shop, a customer could authorize a payment using biometric data. [caption id="attachment_57065" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] A representative of BRB Tech presents the company's smile payment and palm payment solutions for shops and coffee shops.[/caption] Company representative Muratbek Azamkulov told TCA that Smile Payment was undergoing testing and had achieved 99.9% accuracy. Palm Payment is initially being developed for Uzbekistan's Business Development Bank, but Azamkulov said the company plans to offer the technology to other banks as well. On a nearby stand, IT Park Dushanbe was trying pitch the Tajik capital as an attractive destination for technology companies. Hilola Safarova, head of marketing and public relations at the park, said it now has more than 100 residents and over 50 partners. The park offers technology companies tax benefits and customs preferences, including exemptions for qualifying imported equipment. [caption id="attachment_57064" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Hilola Safarova, Head of Marketing and Public Relations at IT Park Dushanbe, presents the park's services and opportunities for IT companies.[/caption] A Startup Trying to Make Banks Compete for Borrowers One of the smaller Uzbek startups at the exhibition was FINKO, founded by Jaloliddin Ibodov. Its model reverses the usual process of looking for a loan. Instead of approaching banks one by one, an individual or business submits information through FINKO. The application can then be sent to several banks and microfinance organizations, allowing the borrower to compare offers. The cheapest interest rate is not necessarily the only consideration. "One borrower may want a lower monthly payment, while someone else might prefer a longer loan. Another person will look for the cheapest interest rate," Ibodov said, adding that FINKO currently works with five banks and ten microfinance organizations and has around 30,000 registered users. The platform charges users 10,000 Uzbek soums, about $0.80, to submit an application and receives a commission from a partner bank when a loan is issued. For about a year, the founders financed development themselves. Ibodov said the startup has begun approaching venture capital firms as revenue starts to appear. From Robotics Clubs to Satellites A large part of the exhibition was aimed at a younger generation of engineers. Diyorbek Kodiraliyev of the...

4 weeks ago

Venture Investment

Agrobank Venture Fund Launches With $6.1 Million to Support Startups in Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan’s Agrobank has launched a $6.1 million venture fund that plans to invest in up to 75 startups, with agricultural technology and artificial intelligence among its main targets. AgroVentures was presented on September 23 during ICT Week Uzbekistan 2026, held from September 22–25 at CAEx in Tashkent. The fund plans to invest between $25,000 and $500,000 in 60–75 companies. Its main focus will be agricultural technology and artificial intelligence, although it will also consider startups in areas including fintech, healthcare, education, and logistics. AgroVentures is aiming to more than double the value of its investments and eventually exit between eight and 12 companies, with those exits projected to be worth a combined $15–18 million. Zohidjon Yusupov, a venture capital specialist at Agrobank, told The Times of Central Asia that the fund would look at the strength of a startup’s team, the problem it was trying to solve, the size of its potential market, and whether its business model could be expanded. Agriculture will be a particular focus, with AgroVentures looking at technologies that could help farmers monitor crops to predict yields and use water more efficiently, as well as gain better access to markets and financing. “For example, AI-based monitoring can help farmers identify crop stress or diseases earlier, while smart irrigation technologies can help reduce water consumption,” Yusupov said. The fund’s first initiative is the Agrobank Corporate Accelerator, developed with Tashkent-based AI Station under a partnership signed on September 15. The 12-week program will select up to 20 startups to test their products with Agrobank and its business clients, with successful participants potentially securing investment or commercial partnerships. Applications are open until October 23 through the accelerator’s website.

4 weeks ago

Technology Investment

Enterprise Uzbekistan Offers Tech Firms English-Law Framework and Tax Incentives Through 2100

Uzbekistan is offering international technology companies a separate legal regime based on principles of English law, tax incentives, three-year visas for foreign specialists, and a regulatory sandbox for testing new products. The measures will form the basis of Enterprise Uzbekistan, a new international center for digital technologies. Organizers presented the project a ICT Week Uzbekistan 2026, held in Tashkent from September 22 to 25, during which they hosted a dedicated Enterprise Uzbekistan Summit. [caption id="attachment_56891" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Davron Yakubov, managing partner at BDO Uzbekistan[/caption] The government hopes the new regime will reduce some of the risks foreign companies face when entering Uzbekistan, including changes in tax rules, commercial disputes, and restrictions on hiring overseas staff. The special regime is planned to remain in place through 2100, while conditions granted to participants are not supposed to become less favorable over time. Farkhod Ibragimov, Chief Executive of Enterprise Uzbekistan, said foreign companies entering a new market typically want to know how long incentives will last, how disputes will be resolved, and what tax, customs, and visa rules they will face. Sultonmurod Rasulov, Head of Strategic Partnerships at Enterprise Uzbekistan, argued that uncertainty itself imposes costs on businesses. “Uncertainty is a kind of hidden tax on every direction a business moves in and every decision it makes,” Rasulov said. For technology companies, he added, rapid economic growth alone is not enough. “Global clients do not buy Uzbekistan’s GDP. They buy certainty, they buy products, they buy predictability.” English Law, Commercial Court, and Regulatory Sandbox Enterprise Uzbekistan is being established as a separate legal environment for international technology companies. English will be the official language for documentation, while its legal framework will draw on the common law of England and Wales. Commercial disputes are expected to fall under the jurisdiction of the Tashkent International Commercial Court. “Even if the Enterprise Uzbekistan administration makes a wrong decision regarding a company, it will be able to challenge that decision in an independent court,” Ibragimov said. The center will also include a regulatory sandbox allowing companies to test products in areas where existing rules have not kept pace with new technologies. The regime is expected to cover cloud data storage and processing, international recruitment, and investment instruments familiar to foreign investors. Companies will be allowed 100% foreign ownership, while more flexible employment arrangements are planned for overseas specialists. Taxes and Visas Enterprise Uzbekistan plans to apply three main taxes: value-added tax (VAT), corporate income tax, and personal income tax. Priority activities may qualify for exemptions from corporate income tax and a zero VAT rate on sales abroad and within the center, subject to the final rules. Rasulov said highly qualified foreign specialists may also qualify for zero personal income tax on salaries and dividends. Foreign specialists are expected to be eligible for visas valid for up to three years, renewable without leaving Uzbekistan. Those meeting Enterprise Uzbekistan requirements will not need a separate work permit. Technology Exports and Talent Rasulov said Uzbekistan’s information and communications technology (ICT)...

4 weeks ago

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