Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 16 January, Singapore hosted the Uzbek-Singapore business forum on the eve of the state visit of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, aimed at comprehensively strengthening business ties between entrepreneurs of the two countries.

The event was attended by Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan Laziz Kudratov, Minister of Trade and Industry of Singapore Gan Kim Yong, Chairman of the Singapore Business Federation Lim Ming Yan, heads of relevant ministries and departments, industry associations, as well as more than 200 representatives of leading corporations, holdings and companies from the two countries.

Speaking with a welcoming speech, Laziz Kudratov noted the importance of the upcoming high-level events, which will open a new page in the relationship between Uzbekistan and Singapore.

“We are determined to use all the advantages of the event and enrich it with strong and concrete practical agreements,” said Laziz Kudratov.

During the forum, the participants were provided with information on the ongoing reforms in our country, aimed, among other things, at improving investment attractiveness, strengthening investor protection and liberalizing foreign trade. It was noted that due to the effectiveness of the adopted programs, the interest of foreign partners is growing, their confidence is being strengthened.

The attention of the participants was focused on the positive dynamics of deepening interaction between the business circles of the two countries, which resulted in the development and implementation of new investment projects, the development of trade and industrial cooperation.

In recent years, the volume of Singaporean investments in Uzbekistan has exceeded US$700 million, the number of enterprises with Singaporean capital has increased 4 times, and the trade turnover between the two countries has doubled. The most promising measures to increase the volume of mutual trade are the implementation of interregional transport and logistics projects, the active use of existing transport corridors and infrastructure.

In turn, the Singaporean side confirmed its firm intentions to provide support in strengthening and building up partnership with Uzbekistan in a wide range of areas. The chemical, textile, pharmaceutical, agricultural industries, education, healthcare, logistics, as well as the IT sector are identified as drivers for further growth in interaction.

The forum program continued with a plenary session with the participation of Singapore’s big business leaders, during which Prakash Kezhriwal, Director of the Indorama Group, Eric Kuan, President of the Institute for Management Development of Singapore, and Wang Chi Fo, General Director of PSA International, discussed with representatives of business circles of the two countries the practical aspects of effective doing business in Uzbekistan, prospects for cooperation in the field of transport and logistics.

As part of the program of the event, B2B negotiations and presentations of the investment potential of our country, specific project cases in the context of various sectors of the economy of Uzbekistan were also held.

As a result of the business forum, 23 agreements and contracts were signed in the trade, investment and financial areas, the chemical, energy and textile industries, the development of industrial zones, the implementation of infrastructure projects and the production of food products, as well as in construction, education, healthcare and pharmaceuticals.