Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 1 May, on the eve of the Tashkent International Investment Forum and the second meeting of the Council of Foreign Investors, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev received a delegation of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development led by its President Odile Renaud-Basso.

The highest level of partnership achieved in recent years and the close and fruitful cooperation between Uzbekistan and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development was noted with deep satisfaction.

Today, the Bank’s project portfolio in Uzbekistan exceeds 4.4 billion euros. The share of the private sector in them is close to 70 percent.

A new Partnership Strategy between Uzbekistan and the EBRD has been adopted to expand the areas and scope of cooperation, primarily in small and medium-sized businesses, women’s entrepreneurship, alternative energy, digital technologies, and others.

With the Bank’s active support and direct participation, measures are being taken to prepare state-owned enterprises for privatization, significant transactions have been implemented in the banking and financial sector, and the regulatory framework in green energy, transport infrastructure, ecology, and other priority areas is being improved.

The Head of state noted the importance of the speedy preparation and implementation of new projects in water supply, energy, road infrastructure, and the development of green cities.

Views were also exchanged on the agenda of the upcoming meeting of the Council of Foreign Investors.