Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The International Round Table on the topic: “Achievements of Uzbekistan in the fight against poverty: analysis and conclusions”, organized by the Center for Economic Research and Reforms together with the World Bank, the UN Development Program in Uzbekistan and the Representative Office of the UN Children’s Fund in Uzbekistan, completed its work in Tashkent on 23 February.

The discussion forum brought together representatives of international organizations, UN agencies, civil society institutions, experts from foreign research centers and the media.

It is important to note that Uzbekistan has made progress in advancing its transformation agenda in the fight against poverty and inequality. Starting in 2021, the poverty level in the country has been reduced from 17% to 11%.

According to CERR estimates, over three years there has been a decrease in the structure of wage income and an increase in small business. So, if in 2021 income from wages amounted to 70.2%, and from small businesses - 0.7%, then by the end of 2023 it was already 62.7% and 2.9%, respectively.

Nobel laureate in economics, member of the US National Academy of Sciences Abhijit Banerjee, Director of the Center for Economic Research and Reforms Obid Khakimov, Head of the World Bank Office in Uzbekistan Marco Mantovanelli, Acting UNDP Resident Representative in Uzbekistan Anas Fayyad Karman, Acting Head of UNICEF Representative Office in Uzbekistan Geoffrey Izhumba addressed the participants of the round table with their parting words.

In his video message to the round table participants, Prof. Banerjee, welcoming the participants, called for deepening the study of poverty reduction and developing policies that will change the world.

“I am pleased to welcome you to this round table, which is taking place in Tashkent, dedicated to reducing and combating poverty. This is one of the biggest problems of our time, and by bringing a scientific approach to solving this issue, as well as the researchers who have gathered here today and can delve into its study, all of these will allow us to develop measures that can change this world,” Abhijeet noted. Banerjee.

Wishing for a successful discussion, the co-founder of the J-PAL Poverty Action Laboratory emphasized that he was “really very proud to be part of this process (poverty alleviation)” and expressed regret that he “personally could not participate” in the forum.

Obid Khakimov in his address outlined 6 key areas in the fight against poverty - the development of the private sector and entrepreneurship, job creation, strengthening the social protection system, improving the quality and accessibility of education, expanding access to healthcare and medical services and ensuring environmental safety.

The CERR director noted that Uzbekistan is aimed at reducing poverty and each new reform is implemented on the basis of research that expresses the will and wishes of the people.

“Today our country is experiencing major transformation processes. In parallel with the changes, we study people’s needs and their problems. It is clear that Uzbekistan has demonstrated a focus on poverty reduction,” noted the head of CERR.

Ambar Narayan, World Bank Poverty and Equity Global Practice Manager for the Europe and Central Asia region: “Since 2020, Uzbekistan has made significant progress in collecting poverty statistics, which allows us to better understand the scale of the challenges faced by the poor. We see "It is critical to remove barriers that prevent poor households from accessing quality employment. Prioritizing economic mobility and investing in vulnerable groups, including youth, women and low-skilled workers, will help create more productive jobs and reduce poverty."

Anas Fayyad Karman, Acting UNDP Resident Representative in Uzbekistan, noted in his opening remarks: “To fully understand poverty in terms of well-being and quality of life, we believe countries need to consider both monetary and non-monetary dimensions. The more data is available in a simple and understandable format, the more tools decision makers have to target their efforts to reduce poverty in all its forms and dimensions.”

Geoffrey Ijumba, acting head of the UNICEF Office in Uzbekistan welcomed Uzbekistan’s efforts to develop a national action plan to eradicate child poverty, and called “step number one on this path - assessing the scale of the problem.

“Putting the problem of child poverty at the forefront, as well as developing appropriate measures and programs, will allow Uzbekistan to achieve its goals in the field of poverty reduction, as stated in the Uzbekistan 2030 Strategy.” It will also contribute to achieving the SDGs of ending extreme child poverty and halving the national definition.”

Key issues discussed at the round table included reforms to strengthen social protection systems, ensure economic and financial conditions for equal access to resources, and mobilize resources for poverty eradication programs.

At the round table, Uzbekistan’s active actions in the fight against poverty and inequality were especially noted. It was noted that more than 2 million 300 thousand needy families, women, single elderly people and persons with disabilities are fully covered by the social protection system.

Speaking about reforms aimed at fighting poverty in Uzbekistan, experts focused on the tools that are used to create social programs, increase the targeting of support for the poor, develop entrepreneurship, and understand the effectiveness of various programs being adopted.

During the Forum, foreign experts and partners were presented with the ongoing work on the ground based on the “mahallabay” system. Following the discussions, experts noted the need to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the impact of strategies and government programs in Uzbekistan, as well as a more in-depth study of the Uzbek model of poverty reduction.