Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — On 3 April, as part of the ongoing "Central Asia – EU" summit in Samarkand, the Minister of Investments, Industry, and Trade of Uzbekistan, Laziz Kudratov, participated in a meeting with a delegation from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) led by its President, Odile Renaud-Basso.

The meeting was also attended by Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan Jamshid Khodjayev, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Jamshid Kuchkarov, as well as heads of relevant ministries and agencies.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the progress of current agreements and measures to accelerate work on new investment projects in a constructive manner.

Both sides expressed satisfaction with Uzbekistan’s status as the largest partner of the EBRD in the region over the past five years. During this period, the Bank has invested 4.5 billion euros in the country, 70% of which was directed towards the development of the private sector.

Note: Since the start of EBRD’s operations in Uzbekistan, funding for 173 projects and programs totaling more than 5.4 billion euros has been approved. Of these, 20 projects have been implemented with 1.9 billion euros, 14 projects totaling 3.5 billion euros are under development, and 29 projects with a total value of 3.6 billion euros are in the final stages of pre-project documentation preparation.

It was emphasized that the strategic directions of EBRD’s work, outlined in its Strategy for 2024–2029, align with Uzbekistan’s 2030 Strategy. This creates opportunities for further expanding the partnership and attracting non-sovereign financial and technical assistance to priority sectors of the economy.

In this context, specific projects were discussed to support the private sector, the development of women’s and youth entrepreneurship, banking system reforms, modernization of water supply systems, and improvements in healthcare and education, including public-private partnership initiatives.

The head of the EBRD delegation expressed readiness to increase investment volumes in the identified areas, including environmentally sustainable projects and direct investments in the corporate sector.

At the conclusion of the meeting, both sides confirmed their strong commitment to developing constructive and mutually beneficial cooperation, increasing the number of joint projects, and expanding areas of collaboration.