INFORMATION DIGEST OF PRESS OF UZBEKISTAN # 75

April 18, 2017

POLITICS
President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev has visited the Alpomish LLC in the city of Samarqand

INNOVATIONS
Uzbekistan is preparing for the 3rd Tashkent International Innovation Forum, which will be held on May 10-12 within the framework of the 10th Fair of Innovative Ideas, Technologies and Projects

INFRASTRUCTURE
Tashkent: Heat Supply Issues to Be Tackled

BUSINESS CLIMATE
All conditions are created for investors

INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
More than 1,5 thousand goods "Made in Uzbekistan" are presented at the exhibition in Tajikistan

MUSUEMS
Museums Masterpieces in Shahrisabz

POLITICS

President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev has visited the Alpomish LLC in the city of Samarqand
There were presentations of a number of promising projects directed towards the socio-economic development of the region.
Samarqand Region has great tourism potential. Consistent work is being carried out to develop tourism, to raise the quality of tourism services and to expand their scope. To further raise this sector’s potential and to increase the tourist flow, a project was drawn up to create a free tourism zone in the city of Samarqand. Under this project to be implemented in 2017-2019, a tourism-entertainment hotel complex on the Amir Temur street and a winter recreational facility on the banks of the Samarqand rowing canal are to be built.
Information about these tourism centres’ possibilities and about services to be provided for tourists and projects to observe Uzbek national values at entertainment facilities were presented to the Head of State.
In Samarqand Region, too, as in all the other regions of the country, large-scale measures are being carried out to rapidly develop the small business and private entrepreneurship sphere and to support free entrepreneurial activity. The President’s decree dated 12 January 2017 on creating “Urgut”, “Ghijduvon”, “Qoqon” and “Hazorasp” free economic zones opens up broad opportunities for this sphere.
Under the decision, the “Urgut” free economic zone’s “Urgut-1” area was created in Urgut District, “Urgut-2” in Nurobod District and “Urgut-3” in Pastdarghom District. A total of 816 hectares of land was allocated in these areas, and work has been started to provide them with the necessary engineering-communication infrastructure. Today projects are being implemented to produce light industry goods, home appliances, medical equipment, pharmaceuticals, leather shoes, stationery and building materials. 83 projects were drawn up for the years 2017-2018, and 20 of them will be implemented this year.
These projects, the overall value of which is 250 million dollars, will be financed with credits from commercial banks and funds from founders. As a result, 5.5 thousand new jobs will be created.
The President said that a systemic approach was necessary to work on the creation of this strategic zone. Qualified entrepreneurs should be attracted to this zone, the work of industrial zones abroad should be studied and advanced experiences should be put into practice here. A specific college in Urgut District should be chosen for training personnel for the economic zone, and such work should be done in the “Ghijduvon”, “Qoqon” and “Hazorasp” free economic zones too.
At a dialogue with entrepreneurs, recommendations were given on effectively using the favourable business climate being created there, on raising the quality of products, on developing export activity, on studying external markets and on stepping up cooperation with foreign businessmen.
(Source: UzA)

INNOVATIONS

Uzbekistan is preparing for the 3rd Tashkent International Innovation Forum, which will be held on May 10-12 within the framework of the 10th Fair of Innovative Ideas, Technologies and Projects
Its main task is to improve international cooperation in matters of science, innovation and education, technology transfer, and better integration between production and science.
– The forum will focus on real processes of modernization and innovative transformations in various sectors, the development of high-tech industries, emergence of an economy based on the generation and use of advanced knowledge, research and development, focused on the creation of new technologies, products and services, and their use, Head of the Executive Office of the Committee for the Coordination of Science and Technology Advancement Odilkhuja Parpiyev said.
He also noted that one of the main topics of the forthcoming forum will be changes in state policy, activities of management bodies of enterprises and organizations aimed at using innovative solutions, technologies, products and services to accelerate the processes of modernization of economy and social sphere.
On the eve of the forum and an innovative fair in all regions of the republic, presentations of scientific developments took place, taking into account the needs of specific regions. Within the framework of presentations, great attention was attached to the involvement of a new generation of scientists in the solution of science intensive tasks.
(Source: «Uzbekistan Today» newspaper)

INFRASTRUCTURE

Tashkent: Heat Supply Issues to Be Tackled
There are plans afoot to completely decentralize the municipal heat supply system by building new local boiler units with highly efficient boilers in Tashkent.
In 2017-2019, up-to-date, efficient and energy-saving technologies will be introduced into the system, using renewable energy sources. The decentralization schedule provides for the construction of local boiler units in the current district heating systems using solar collectors.
To date, 65% of all heat networks of the capital are outdated, and 1,761.7 km of pipelines are subject to replacement. It is scheduled to overlay 160 km of pipelines of heating networks annually: 30 km of mains and 130 km of distribution networks. This huge amount of work is unviable today. It is easier to introduce the technologies that are widely used throughout the world.
Therefore, it is envisaged to decentralize the heat supply system of heat source areas. In three years, it is planned to install 1,514 local boiler units and solar stations in Tashkent. The construction will obviate the need to re-lay heat networks, as they will work in closed mode.
It is anticipated that the project will ensure saving 197.9 million cubic meters of natural gas for 40.5 billion soums per year, electricity - 59.7 million kW/h for 9.5 billion soums, and cold water - 22.2 million cubic meters for almost 4 billion soums (currency rates of CB RU from 18.04.2017, 1$= 3678.89 soums). Another innovative project in the heat supply system of the capital comes to the introduction of cogeneration units at HGP-8, HGP-9 and HGP-10. They will ensure the growing needs of the city’s economy in electricity and will cover 70.3% of its annual production. Thereby, the provisional saving of natural gas will make 40%.
In 2015, Tashteploenergo built 54 pilot local boiler units in Mirzo Ulugbek and other districts of the capital, which successfully proved themselves in the heating season 2015-2016.
Figures
The installed capacity of all boiler units in Tashkent is 6,233 Gcal/hour, the connected capacity is 3,602 Gcal/h. Nearly 9.67 million Gcal of heat energy is supplied annually. Tashteploenergo balance sheet incorporates 1,355 km of heating network channels, including 254.4 km of main networks, and 1,100 km of distribution heating networks.
(Source: «Uzbekistan Today» newspaper)

BUSINESS CLIMATE

All conditions are created for investors
In days of independence in Uzbekistan the effective system of formation of favorable investment climate ensuring the rights and guarantees of the business entities with participation of the foreign capital has been created.
The laws "On Foreign Investments in the Republic of Uzbekistan", "On guarantees and measures of protection of foreign investors’ rights", a number of decrees and resolutions of the President of the country and the Cabinet of Ministers have been adopted for this purpose.
Now such directions as decrease in a tax burden, improvement and simplification of method of taxation, increase in the stimulating role of taxation, as well as establishment of a number of privileges and preferences in this sphere have determined as the main directions of tax policy in our country. Such measures are intended to provide, among other, further modernization of production with participation of foreign investments, their technical and technological rearmament, employment of the population. An important role in this direction is played by the resolution of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan "About additional measures for stimulation of expansion of production of domestic nonfood consumer goods" of January 29, 2009. According to this document 18 enterprises created with participation of foreign investments in the Samarkand region have gained tax benefits worth 1,1 billion Soums in 2014. 23 enterprises with participation of the foreign capital have used such preferences worth 1,9 billion Soums in 2015 (currency rates of CB RU from 18.04.2017, 1$= 3678.89 soums). Upon adoption of the Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan "About additional measures for stimulation of attraction of direct foreign investments" of April 10, 2012 opportunities for business activity of business entities with participation of the foreign capital have considerably extended.
Also note that profit and property tax burden, assignments for improvement and development of infrastructure, other obligatory payments are considerably reduced for the enterprises with direct participation of foreign investments in our country. Such preferences are provided to the enterprises for three years with direct attraction of foreign investments for the amount from $300 thousand to $3 mln., for five years with investment obligations worth from $3 to $10 mln., for seven years - over $10 mln. Where once such privileges were applied for 8 production lines, since 2012 preferences have already covered 20 lines.
In 2014 in the Samarkand region one enterprise had used such privileges for the amount over 672 million Soums , in 2015 already 4 enterprises have received preferences for 2 479,8 million Soums. Staff of all divisions of the Samarkand regional management on a regular basis carries out work on an explanation of an essence and importance of the documents aimed at formation of favorable investment climate in our country.
(Source: «Business partner.uz» newspaper)

INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

More than 1,5 thousand goods "Made in Uzbekistan" are presented at the exhibition in Tajikistan
Today, the first three-day exhibition-fair of industrial products of Uzbekistan starts in Dushanbe.
"Expansion of mutually beneficial partnership and good-neighborly relations with Tajikistan is becoming important today," said the interlocutor Ibrohim Kenzhabaev in an interview with IA "Jahon" on the occasion of the opening of the fair.
— The national exhibition-fair in Dushanbe is held at the initiative of the Government of Uzbekistan in order to implement the agreements reached on the results of the IV meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation, held at the end of 2016 year.
The national exhibition will help to raise the level of fruitful relations between the entrepreneurs of the two countries to a new level. More than 160 companies are expected to participate in the event, which represent a full range of 1500 kinds of Uzbek-made goods.
On the territory of the shopping center "Poytaht-90" in Dushanbe area of
2000 square meters exhibited textile, food, leather, electrical and cable and wire, pharmaceutical industries, as well as educational and laboratory equipment, building materials, sanitary ware, porcelain products and dishes, perfume and wine and vodka products.
Along with this, in the open demonstration area of 1000 square meters, an exposition of agricultural and transport equipment, in particular, cars and trucks, passenger buses, various tractor, hinged and cotton harvesting equipment is planned.
Within the framework of the fair, there will be business forums and seminars, where about 500 representatives of business circles of both countries are expected to take part.
(Source: IA “Uzbekistan Today”)

MUSUEMS

Museums Masterpieces in Shahrisabz
Shahrisabz has become the venue for the Republican Festival of Museums. Its main event was the opening of a new exposition of the Shahrisabz Museum of Material Culture dedicated to Amir Temur and the Temurids, as well as a photo exhibition ‘Masterpieces of Uzbekistan’s Museums’, which featured photographs of the best exhibits.
“After many years we have revived the holding of a museum festival in our republic,” Nabijon Khushvaktov, director of the Amir Temur Museum of Material Culture in Shahrisabz, says. “Previously, it was held in Karshi in 2006, Marghilan in 2007, and last time in 2008 in Tashkent. Our proposal to hold a museum festival in Shahrisabz was supported by the Ministry of Culture. It enables residents of our city and region, as well as visitors, to get acquainted with the exhibits of many museums of the country. In addition, within the scientific and practical conference, many museum workers and specialists exchanged experience.”
“With the efforts of specialists from many regions we have managed to renew our museum as well,” Nabijon Khushvaktov continues. “The Ministry of Culture, the regional administration, the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan, colleagues from Tashkent, Samarqand, and Karshi helped to create the new exposition. The design work was done by a group of artists and designers from Samarqand, led by an experienced museum specialist Shomurod Ruzimuradov.”
As part of the festival, the ceremony of laying flowers to Amir Temur monument was held, as well as the performance of the artists of the National Drama Theater of Uzbekistan, People’s Artist of Uzbekistan Yoqub Akhmedov, Honored Artists of Uzbekistan Fatkhulla Masudov and Lola Eltoyeva, folklore groups of Shahrisabz.
(Source: «Uzbekistan Today» newspaper)

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