As part of his state visit to China, on January 24th Uzbekistan president Shavkat Mirziyoyev visited the headquarters of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in Beijing and held talks with the bank’s president, Jin Liqun.
The sides announced that cooperation between Uzbekistan and AIIB has reached unprecedented levels in recent years, with the portfolio of joint projects exceeding $3 billion. In 2023 alone the bank’s investments in Uzbek projects reached $1 billion, financing energy, water supply, reconstruction of roads and railway, and business development.
Mr Mirziyoyev advocated increasing financing for projects involving strategic raw materials, and the implementation of socially important programs on the principles of public-private partnership, his press service reported.
During the meeting, Mr Liqun reaffirmed his bank’s strategic commitment to supporting Uzbekistan’s sustainable growth.
The two leaders signed a three-year investment program, with the goal of further supporting Uzbekistan’s development in multiple sectors across the country, AIIB said.
In 2023, AIIB announced that it would hold its 2024 Annual Meeting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on September 25th-26th, marking the first time AIIB would hold its flagship event in Central Asia.
AIIB is a multilateral development bank which began operations in Beijing in January 2016 and has since grown to 109 approved members worldwide.
