Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 20 May 2021, a ceremony of signing a Memorandum of Cooperation between the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) was held. 

The document was signed by the First Deputy Minister of Investments and Foreign Trade L. Kudratov and Deputy Head of the JICA Representative Office in Uzbekistan Y. Takemura.

The document envisages the introduction of a new private sector financing instrument of JICA in Uzbekistan without the need to provide a sovereign guarantee from the government in order to effectively develop infrastructure, accelerate economic growth, achieve sustainable development goals, reduce poverty, and implement measures to combat climate change.

The practical aspects and mechanisms of the new financial instrument will be covered during two business conferences in the format of webinars, which are scheduled for May 28 and June 24 this year. The purpose of the webinars is to broadly inform the heads of private companies in Uzbekistan about new opportunities for financing investment projects offered by JICA.

JICA has been operating in Uzbekistan since 1993. The main activity of the Agency is the provision of loans and grants in order to ensure the socio-economic development of the country's economy. Currently, the volume of the portfolio of projects in Uzbekistan is about US$4.1 billion.