CM December 2021

COUNTRY FOCUS
AUTHOR – Adam Bernstein
deep processing of natural gas are planned for
completion by 2025.
Bids on contracts to supply services to the
country are welcome, specifically for consulting,
engineering, construction, equipment supply,
and management. Technologies for oil refining
and gas extraction, treatment and processing
are also of interest to the government.
AGRICULTURE
According to Britannica.com, a combination
of good sunlight, short mild winters, fertile
irrigated soil, and good pastures, makes
Uzbekistan well suited to cattle, sheep and
cotton. But the country is also known for
silkworms – especially in the Fergana Valley
– which are fed mulberry leaves from trees
planted along streets and ditches. Beyond this,
varieties of melons, apricots, pomegranates,
berries, apples, pears, cherries, and figs grow
abundantly, as do vegetables such as carrots,
cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, and greens. The
sector also cultivates grapes for wine or raisins.
However, Uzbekistan struggles with water.
Irrigation has fallen out of favour following
the depletion of the great rivers – the virtual
destruction of the Aral Sea is testament to this;
the construction of new irrigation systems
has been prohibited or curtailed. That said,
several large artificial lakes and reservoirs
have been created on the Zeravshan and other
rivers. It is estimated that $826m will be spent
on modernising some 299 pumping stations
between 2021-2026.
Overall, according to trade.gov, agriculture
contributes around 28 percent of GDP and
employs around 27 percent of workers. The
Uzbek government is hoping to stimulate
growth by adopting modern technologies.
Further, it’s creating Agricultural Knowledge
and Innovation Centres to provide advice on
improving soil, combating plant diseases, and
selecting seeds.
There are opportunities in water saving
technologies, technical agricultural solutions,
equipment for mills and processing, packing
and packaging – the latter especially as only 15
percent of the 20m tons of fruits and vegetables
grown each year is processed for longer shelflife,
30 percent is lost due to insufficient storage
and processing capacity, and just 16 percent
of meat and milk is processed. It’s telling that
Uzbekistan’s 1500 refrigerated warehouses can
accommodate only 4.5 percent of the harvest;
the government plans to triple its cold-storage
chain capacity by 2025.
TOURISM
With a rich cultural and historical heritage,
friendly people, and natural beauty, Uzbekistan’s
tourist sector is ripe for expansion. The country
was closed to foreigners for many years and
tourism was hit hard by the pandemic. The
Uzbek government wants to grow tourism
services to $2.2bn in 2025 from $1bn in 2018.
Investments in infrastructure are central
to this and there are, for example, some 90
Tashkent, Uzbek Toshkent, capital
of Uzbekistan and the largest city
in Central Asia. Tashkent lies in the
northeastern part of the country. It
is situated at an elevation of 1,475
to 1,575 feet (450 to 480 metres) in
the Chirchiq River valley west of the
Chatkal Mountains and is intersected
by a series of canals from the Chirchiq
River. The city probably dates from
the 2nd or the 1st century BCE and
was variously known as Dzhadzh,
Chachkent, Shashkent, and Binkent;
the name Tashkent, which means
“Stone Village” in Uzbek, was first
mentioned in the 11th century.
Beyond being
one of the
world’s largest
gold producers,
Uzbekistan is
a substantial
producer of
uranium.
planned projects for 66 hotels, 12 shopping
and entertainment centres, nine parks, and
three artisan centres. Similarly, airports will
be expanded and modernised and the aviation
market will be liberalised to permit the creation
of more domestic companies.The Government
is also developing pilgrimage tourism. Trade.
gov reckoned that in 2021 Uzbekistan ranked
16th out of 140 countries in the Global Muslim
Travel Index.
TRANSPORTATION ISSUES
Uzbekistan’s transport system was previously
in a parlous state. Old railways connected
the republic’s major urban centres with other
Central Asian republics, Moscow and Siberia,
and many roads needed repair and widening –
especially so since the fall of the Soviet Union.
But international investment along with
government funding is revamping the network.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / December 2021 / PAGE 26