What attracts foreign investors to Uzbekistan?

Located in the heart of Central Asia, Uzbekistan is becoming an increasingly attractive destination for international investors. Over the past seven years, investments worth 120 billion US dollars have been attracted to the country and more than six thousand enterprises have been created. In particular, in 2024, investment reached $35 billion, and exports amounted to $27 billion.

So what makes Uzbekistan attractive to investors? Let's consider the main aspects.

Firstly, the republic is carrying out large-scale reforms aimed at liberalizing the economy and improving the investment climate.

Since 2017, the country's government has been actively working on the privatization of state-owned enterprises, which opens the way for private investment in various sectors - from energy to agriculture. In addition, the government has simplified business registration procedures, reducing them to 30 minutes from the moment of application. The process of obtaining more than 150 types of permits has been digitized, which has significantly reduced bureaucratic barriers. These steps not only demonstrate the country's commitment to market principles, but also create a favorable environment for foreign companies.

Secondly, Uzbekistan has a developed infrastructure that supports business activity. The Republic is investing in the modernization of transport networks, including roads and railways, which facilitates logistics and trade.

The energy sector is also undergoing changes - renewable energy sources are being actively introduced to ensure a stable energy supply. In particular, since the beginning of this year, solar, wind and hydroelectric power plants have generated 8.7 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity, accounting for 20.3 percent of the total generation in the country.

Telecommunications infrastructure, including broadband Internet, is developing rapidly, which is extremely important for modern business processes. Today, mobile broadband Internet covers 99 percent of settlements in Uzbekistan, and 5G communications are available in all regional centers. At the same time, international bandwidth increased to 4200 Gbit/s, which significantly increased the quality and speed of connection to the global network.

The next factor is human capital. The country's education system provides a constant influx of young qualified personnel, especially in the field of technical and engineering specialties. To adapt the workforce to the requirements of investors and the labor market, the ecosystem of higher and professional education is actively developing. In particular, 71 private universities and 51 technical schools have opened in Uzbekistan in recent years. About 500 thousand students study there, and enrollment in higher education has increased from 9 to 42 percent. This means that investors today can find talented specialists for their projects here.

Fourth, support from the state. Systematic work is being carried out to improve the investment climate, including within the framework of the Council of Foreign Investors under the President of Uzbekistan. The country offers investors a number of preferences, including tax breaks, exemptions from customs duties and guarantees for the protection of property rights.

In addition, work is actively underway to improve the legal system to ensure fair and transparent resolution of disputes, which reduces risks for business. In this regard, bills on investments (including alternative ones) and special economic zones are being developed.

Finally, it is worth mentioning successful examples of investments.

In Uzbekistan, large international companies such as ACWA Power, Masdar, Linde, DataVolt, Shanghai Renewable Energy, Total Energy and many others operate and continue to expand their activities, which indicates the growing investment attractiveness of the country.

Uzbekistan attracts investors with its strategic location, rich natural resources, ongoing economic reforms, developed infrastructure, qualified human capital and government support.

Mels Ochilov,

Chief Specialist of the Ministry of Investment

industry and trade of Uzbekistan