Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 24 January, Deputy Minister Gulnora Rakhimova and the Manager of the UN Women country program in Uzbekistan, Seren Guven Gures, met at the Ministry of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The meeting was also attended by Yermira Lubani, an expert of the UN Women Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia, Head of the Department of Gender and Green Budgeting Methodology of the Ministry Ainura Bakaibayeva, and Chief specialist of the Ministry Dilshod Jumanazarov.

In her welcoming speech, Gulnora Rakhimova expressed gratitude for the support provided in the framework of the implementation of gender reforms and stressed the readiness of the Ministry to actively work in the field of gender budgeting. She also outlined the need to identify the key stages and deadlines for project implementation.

Ms. Seren Guven Gureis noted the high level of political will of the Government of Uzbekistan to carry out such reforms and stressed that not all states are currently ready for such changes.

The main point of discussion was the preparation of a key action plan for the development of a gender-oriented budget and the achievement of gender goals set for the government. Representatives of UN Women expressed their readiness to provide technical support in the implementation of the gender budgeting system, and the development of key indicators of budget programs. They also expressed their willingness to involve an international consultant to accelerate progress in this direction.

It was noted that the experience of Austria, Serbia, Spain, and Turkey in gender-oriented budgeting can be beneficial for Uzbekistan. The meeting participants discussed the possibility of adapting the best practices of these countries in the context of Uzbekistan.

Special attention was paid to planning a series of special workshops with the participation of international experts aimed at training specialists and sharing experience in this field. These events will contribute to improving the competencies of local specialists and a deeper understanding of international practices in the field of gender budgeting.

At the end of the meeting, the parties agreed to continue negotiations to develop mutually beneficial and promising cooperation.