Issues of development of domestic tourism were discussed at the meeting dedicated to a critical analysis of effectiveness of measures taken on increasing the flow of foreign tourists.
Recommendations were given on formation of a tradition of visiting the regions of the country by the population, especially by activists of makhallas, the elderly, youth and low-income families, increasing the share of expenditures for excursions in the budget of trade union organizations.
Uzbekistan has a great potential in the sphere of pilgrimage tourism. For creating necessary amenities in this direction, the Department for supporting pilgrimage tourism has been established in the structure of the Committee for Religious Affairs under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan, a visa-free regime has been introduced for countries such as Malaysia, Turkey and Indonesia.
At the meeting it was noted that opportunities available in this sphere are not being fully used, a number of pilgrimage sites are in poor condition.
There are many mausoleums of scholars, sacred sites in our country that are recognized in the Islamic world, said Shavkat Mirziyoyev. For example, the last refuge of 12 spiritual guides, who had preached the teaching of Naqshbandiyya, were found in various regions. Currently, we are working on improvement of 8 complexes, including of seven spiritual guides in Bukhara and Khoja Ahror Vali in Samarkand. However, the mausoleums of Muhammad Zahid Bukhari, Alauddin Attor in Surkhandarya, Muhammad Darvesh, Muhammad Imganaki in Kashkadarya need to be repaired.
In this regard, the khokims of Surkhandarya and Kashkadarya regions were given instructions on ensuring improvement of these pilgrimage sites, improving the condition of roads leading to them, creating all conditions for pilgrims.