POLItiCs
President-elect Shavkat Mirziyoyev assumes office during a ceremony at the joint session of Oliy Majlis chambers
A joint session of both chambers of the Oliy Majlis, dedicated to the solemn ceremony of the inauguration of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, opened in Tashkent.
The solemn ceremony was attended by members of the government of the Republic of Uzbekistan, heads of ministries and agencies, members of the Central Election Commission, chiefs of diplomatic missions of foreign nations and representative offices of international organizations, national and foreign mass media.
Chairman of the Central Election Commission M.Abdusalomov opened the session. He underlined that Shavkat Miromonovich Mirziyoyev, a candidate from the Movemenet of entrepreneurs and businesspeople- Liberal-democratic party of Uzbekistan, has been elected President of the Republic of Uzbekistan with 88,61 per cent of the vote, based on the results of the presidential elections that took place on 4 December 2016. He also noted that the meeting of the Central Election Commission on 9 December 2016, having considered the election results, adopted a resolution on the election of Shavkat Miromonovich Mirziyoyev to the post of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
On behalf of those gathered in the grand hall and all the voters, the Chairman of the Central Election Commission cordially congratulated Shavkat Mirziyoyev on his election to the post of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan and handed an identity card of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan and a certificate of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
In accordance with Article 92 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev took an oath of the following content: “I do solemnly swear to faithfully serve the people of Uzbekistan, to strictly follow the Constitution and laws of the Republic, to guarantee the rights and freedoms of its citizens, to conscientiously exercise the duties vested on the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan”.
Shavkat Mirziyoyev delivered an inaugural speech at the solemn ceremony.
(Source: Press-service of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan)
investments
Currently, banks in Uzbekistan closely associate their independent development strategy with growth of the real economy
In its turn, that creates conditions for the expansion of production, implementation of the investment projects that are focused on the manufacture of new, competitive products.
In the years of independence, the banking system has turned into an important mechanism for development of national economy, establishment of production processes at the level of international standards, and filling the consumer market with quality products. In current market conditions, it has ensured the accumulation of free funds of individuals and entities, their inter-sector reallocation, as well as national and international payment relations between different economic entities.
Over the past decade, the average annual growth rate of lending to business has been at 30%, and generally grew up by 29 times, and micro-credit rates scaled up by 56 times. In the first nine months of the current year alone, the volume of credits allocated by commercial banks to small businesses has increased by 1.3 times and amounted to 12.6 trillion soums (currency rates of CB RU from 14.12.2016, 1$= 3203.70 soums).
Mechanisms of loaning have been simplified and streamlined. Representatives of the private sector have been provided with certain benefits and preferences for banking services. For example, a specific mechanism now ensures full financial support for farming enterprises and economies through preferential loans. The mechanism has empowered a transition to the system of preferential crediting by commercial banks to cover the expenditures for growing agricultural products through the procurement and processing enterprises.
Bank investments have been an increasingly important motivating factor in agriculture, as proved by the fact that cotton-growing and grain-growing farms are annually allocated an average of 2.4 trillion soums of loans, and 254 billion soums is envisaged for the development of cattle breeding. 217 billion soums is allocated for the laying intensive gardens, development of beekeeping, poultry and fish farming. Other branches are covered by preferential loans of 329 billion soums, and 160 billion soums of credit funds are channeled in strengthening the logistical capacity of farms. These measures have been contributing to the transformation of farms into a leading force in agriculture, increase in production volumes, and creation of additional opportunities for building industry in rural areas.
(Source: «Uzbekistan Today» newspaper)
ENERGETICS
Uzagroeksport Company, Uzbekistan’s only operator that provides supplies of fruits and vegetables abroad, has opened a new trading house in Astana in partnership with Kazakh partners
The largest transport and logistics center in Kazakhstan, built by Continental Logistics, was chosen as a venue of the Central Asian trading house for the convenience of traders and transporters.
The trading house provides with ‘A’ class warehouse complexes outfitted with advanced automated equipment, thereby creating an appropriate framework to ensure the logistics of various types of cargo, and significantly increase the loading and unloading capacity.
The facility will be engaged in wholesale and retail trade, organization of deliveries, customs clearance and sales of Uzbek food products. It will also deal with the development and implementation of marketing policy, conclusion of agreements and contracts with retail chains and other interested companies in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
It has to be recalled that in the next two years, Uzbekistan intends to build a network of trade houses around the world, to promote fresh and processed fruits and vegetables as well as food products.
To date, Uzagroeksport has already opened four trading houses in Russia and three in Kazakhstan. The work on the establishment of trade houses in the UAE, South Korea, India and some countries of the European Union is nearing completion. Negotiations are also underway in the new markets in Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Malaysia.
As of early 2016, direct deliveries of Uzbek fruits and vegetables to Russia and Central Asian countries have tripled, to South Korea have grown fivefold, to the UAE – by 1.8 times, to Germany – 1.6 times. In 10 months, Uzbekistan exported a total of nearly 700,000 tons of agricultural products, and by the end of the current year the number is expected to reach one million tons.
(Source: «Uzbekistan Today» newspaper)
BUSINESS CLIMATE
Over 120,000 small businesses in Uzbekistan, including more than 4,500 farms, were established and are headed by women
Today, millions of modern women work all over the world, setting a goal to contribute to the well-being of their families, and ensure their stability. According to statistics, the majority of the world’s major businesses are represented by women.
Year by year, women in Uzbekistan have been increasingly manifesting themselves in different fields of activity. In many ways, the progress has been facilitated by a strong legal framework that aims at ensuring the full-fledged involvement of the female part of the population in the socio-political, socio-economic and cultural life of the country, and enhancement of the role and status of the weaker gender in society. There are programs to promote women’s employment, improve their working conditions and education, especially in rural areas, and engage them in business activities.
Public organizations, state authorities, ministries and agencies, banking institutions have teamed up to achieve the goals. In the first nine months of the current year, commercial banks allocated more than 1.3 trillion soums (currency rates of CB RU from 14.12.2016, 1$= 3203.70 soums) of loans to better involve women in business and support them. The relevant organizations elaborated programs to facilitate the procedure of micro loaning, control commercial banks in the provision of funds, and provide privileges and preferences to women.
Owing to these efforts, Uzbekistan now occupies a leading position among 125 countries in terms of providing women with optimally convenient conditions for the establishment of business and its management. As a result, Uzbekistan’s businesswomen currently contribute significantly to the stability and prosperity of not just their families, but also the country’s economy, employing the whole potential and knowledge in manufacturing, services, trade, food industries, animal husbandry, and other dynamically progressive sectors. It is noteworthy that in the majority of cases, new production capacities are located in remote areas of the country, providing employment for the local population, especially women and youth.
Today, the proportion of women employed in the economy has reached 45%. The number of women, who had raised the welfare of the population by their own example and were awarded high state awards, has been growing year after another.
(Source: «Uzbekistan Today» newspaper)
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