Uzbekistan - The Times Of Central Asia

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China Uzbekistan Climate Change Environmental Awareness

Chinese Entrepreneurs to Help Address Environmental Issues in Uzbekistan

An Action Plan has been signed to develop cooperation between the Ministry of Ecology, Environmental Protection and Climate Change of Uzbekistan and the Association of Chinese Entrepreneurs in Uzbekistan. According to the ministry, the Plan covers a wide range of activities, including the construction of a waste incineration plant and the establishment of a high-tech industrial park (eco-industrial park). It also includes the introduction of an online environmental monitoring system for key polluting enterprises and the introduction of wastewater treatment technology. Alongside the Action Plan, ongoing cooperation between the parties will further the exchange of knowledge and best practices in combating desertification and creating green belts. In addition, the Ministry and the Association of Chinese Entrepreneurs reviewed proposals for the development of green technology projects, the recycling of household and solid waste, prevention of air pollution, and eco-tourism. The application of Chinese experience in landscaping desert areas and creating seedling farms was also discussed.

US Uzbekistan Social Air Pollution

U.S. Government Discusses Data From Air Quality Monitor at Tashkent Embassy

On April 22, a press conference was held at the U.S. Embassy in Uzbekistan with American air quality specialist and researcher Jay Turner speaking to media representatives about the air quality monitoring device installed at the embassy in Tashkent in 2018. According to Turner, the device monitors the concentration of air particles every hour: data is taken every 53 minutes, the remaining seven minutes are spent analyzing it, and the results are compared to the previous hour. Devices recently installed by Uzhydromet also monitor air quality hourly, and their data is roughly similar to that recorded at the U.S. Embassy. However, there are aspects that should be taken into account when comparing the results, says Turner. “It is required to follow certain protocols during the monitoring process. The equipment at the embassy follows these protocols, which I have checked myself. If we assume that Uzhydromet follows these protocols and submits its reports, it can be said that it will be the same as our data,” he said. Turner mentioned that work is currently underway to determine the differences between the monitoring devices. “To find an answer to this question, the U.S. State Department has allocated grant funds to Duke University and plans to install inexpensive air quality monitoring sensors throughout Tashkent. A portion of them has already been installed,” he stated.

Investments China Export/Import Economy Uzbekistan

China Remains Uzbekistan’s Top Trade Partner

In the first three months of 2024, the value of bilateral trade between China and Uzbekistan reached $2.1 billion. During this period, Uzbekistan's exports to China totaled $349.4 million, whilst imports from the People's Republic of China (PRC) reached $1.7 billion. This trade flow reflects a significant surplus in the PRC's trade balance, indicating a steady demand for Chinese goods. According to the Uzbek statistics agency, trade with China accounts for 21.5% of the country's total foreign trade. The number of companies with Chinese investments is steadily growing in Uzbekistan - at the beginning of April, there were 2,501 of them, up 7% compared to the end of last year. At a meeting of the leaders of Uzbekistan and China in Beijing in late January, 2024, Presidents Mirziyoyev and Xi agreed to prepare programs of cooperation in infrastructure development, industrial cooperation, technology transfer in agriculture, and green energy. Last year, Chinese companies commissioned two solar power plants in Uzbekistan with a capacity of 1,000 MW. Mirziyoyev and Xi said bilateral trade turnover between the countries could reach $20 billion annually. The two sides see great potential in the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan trunk-line railroad. According to various estimates, this multi-modal corridor will reduce the distance of cargo delivery to Europe from China by 900 kilometers, saving 7-8 days of transit time.

Uzbekistan EU Relations Economy

Uzbekistan Seeks to Expand Trade Horizons with Europe

- Opinion by Robert Cutler Uzbekistan's economic landscape has been evolving, with announcements of major reforms and international cooperation aimed at economic modernization and increasing its profile in global markets. Its partnership with the European Union (EU) has focused on critical raw materials. At the same time, Tashkent plans to reduce gas exports in favour of expanding petrochemical production and inviting foreign investment into its mining sector. In October 2023, the European Parliament (EP) had endorsed this policy direction by adopting a resolution on Uzbekistan based on a series of broad programmatic documents regarding Central Asia, including a previous Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Uzbekistan on energy cooperation. The EP also favorably mentioned the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (EPCA) concluded in July 2022 to "modernize" the EU's Partnership and Cooperation Agreement signed with Uzbekistan in 1999. A new MoU signed earlier this month by the European Commission’s Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis and Uzbekistan's Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade Laziz Kudratov foresees an ambitious intensification of the partnership. The agreement is touted as a step towards diversifying supply chains to Europe for critical raw materials (CRMs) required for the energy transition. The EU's strategic economic partnership with Uzbekistan The new MoU follows on the EU's 25 October 2023 agreement with Uzbekistan during the Global Gateway Forum. That agreement had confirmed that Uzbekistan, with its reserves of metals such as silver, titanium, and lithium, would join the so-called Critical Raw Materials Forum. However, a critical evaluation of the MoU shows that a lot of hard work will be necessary to realize its plans and promises. In fact, the MoU represents a list of possibilities for cooperation without a guarantee of follow-through. The new partnership focuses on a number of areas of potential collaboration. These may be grouped under three general categories: (1) integrating CRM value and supply chains and their resilience; (2) mobilization of funding; and (3) cooperation on production, research, innovation and capacity building. The MoU itself admits that further specific cooperation is required to establish an operational roadmap that would specify particular joint actions for implementation. This partnership is in line with the EU's Global Gateway Initiative, which seeks to mobilize up to €300 billion in investments by 2027, although the initiative has been criticized for largely being a re-packaging of previously established programs without significant new funding. As far as Uzbekistan is concerned, the big unspoken problem is the need to enhance the country's economic competitiveness in global markets. Uzbekistan's mineral resources exploration Only about 20 percent of Uzbekistan’s territory has been explored. Potential mineral resources are evaluated at US$5.7 billion, with the country’s explored reserves representing about US$1 billion of this amount. This unexplored potential represents a significant opportunity for further enhancing Uzbekistan's potential global competitiveness in the mineral resources sector, but only if transportation logistics can be economically put into place. According to the U.S. Geological Service, Uzbekistan also has reserves of other minerals - such as calcium, kaolin, rhenium and vermiculite...

Uzbekistan Legislation Social Labor Central Asia Education Migration

Uzbekistan to Open Centres for Workers Seeking Employment Abroad

The Uzbek government is to open 27 educational institutions across the country for the purpose of training potential migrants in professions in demand by foreign employers. Students will also have access to lessons in various languages including English, German, Japanese, Korean and Arabic. Courses will be offered on a paid-contract basis for a year. Attendees with existing proficiency in languages spoken in countries of their choice, will be eligible for a 50% reimbursement by the state of costs incurred in attaining related certificates. Teachers at the centres will receive a 100% salary supplement. The government of Uzbekistan had earlier announced measures to support citizens seeking employment abroad and from June this year, migrant workers will be offered compensation for passing the qualification exam, obtaining a work visa in a foreign country, travel costs and insurance. In addition to training programmes to open up opportunities in better-paid and professional jobs outside Uzbekistan, the government has now confirmed further subsidies for legal and material assistance. According to the Uzbek Agency for External Labour Migration, some 70,000 citizens have legally secured work abroad over the past two years and Germany, Great Britain and Japan have recently shown great interest in employing Uzbek migrants. Remittances from labour migrants to Uzbekistan remain a material part of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) -- accounting for 17.8% in 2023. In neighbouring Tajikistan, migrant remittances account for almost half of the country's economic output, and in Kyrgyzstan, 20%.

Water Shortages transboundary water Social Legislation Uzbekistan Kyrgyzstan Economy Turkmenistan Central Asia Kazakhstan Tajikistan

Central Asian Countries Set 2024 Quotas for Amu Darya, Syr Darya River Water Usage

Last week in Kazakhstan, delegates came together for the 87th meeting of the Interstate Commission for Water Coordination (ICWC) of Central Asia, where they discussed the potential and limitations of regional water reservoirs ahead of the 2023-2024 agricultural growing season. According to the ICWC, some of the more pressing questions focused on confirming limits of water usage for the 2024 growing season for the Syr Darya and Amu Darya river basins and the prognosis for water release from the reservoirs in those basins. There's still no information on how much water will be sent to the Aral Sea basin. In accordance with the quota, the draw on water from the Amu Darya watershed will be 56 billion cubic meters for the year, with about 40 billion cubic meters to be used in the April-to-October growing season. As stated in the ICWC agreement, Uzbekistan will receive 16 billion cubic meters, Turkmenistan 15.5 billion cubic meters, and Tajikistan will get 6.9 billion cubic meters. The Syr Darya's water use quota for this year's growing season is around 11.9 billion cubic meters, with 8.8 billion cubic meters going to Uzbekistan, 1.9 billion cubic meters for Tajikistan, 920 million cubic meters for Kazakhstan, and 270 million cubic meters for Kyrgyzstan. According to the ICWC, the totals for irrigated lands by Central Asian country are 4.3 million hectares in Uzbekistan, 2.5 million hectares in Kazakhstan, 1.9 million hectares in Turkmenistan, 1 million hectares in Kyrgyzstan, and 680,000 in Tajikistan.