The press service of the ministry said that a session of Public Council under the Ministry of Culture and Sport Affairs of Uzbekistan was held in Tashkent and it considered several issues.

Director of the Karakalpakstan State Museum of Art named after Igor Savitsky Marinika Babanazarova was invited to the event. She noted that new building of the museum, which was constructed on initiative of the Uzbek President Islam Karimov and launched in 2003, becomes popular worldwide.

Currently, the Government of Uzbekistan adopted decision to expand the museum. It is planned to place collections and exhibition block in two new buildings. It is planned to issue US$10 billion soums to this project in 2013 and overall – 36 billion soums.

Marinika Babanazarova said that currently admirers of fine art and tourists from many foreign states are trying to visit the museum. According to the experts, the museum became the fourth important tourism object in Uzbekistan after Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva. Today, the Museum houses a collection totaling about 90,000 items, including graphics, paintings and sculptures, as well as thousands of artifacts, textiles and jewelry, ranging from the antiquities of Khorezm’s ancient civilization to the works of contemporary Uzbek and Karakalpak artists.

The museum will mark its 50th anniversary in 2015 and preparation works should be conducted. Babanazarova also asked the ministry help to solve issues related to training specialists for museum.

Minister of Culture and Sport Affairs of Uzbekistan said that she raised right issue and added that special educational studio on training of specialists should be opened in Nukus.