11.06.2025

On June 11, the third plenary session of the Foreign Investors Council under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan was held in International congress-center. 

The event held under the chairmanship of the Head of our state was attended by the president of the European bank for reconstruction and development Odile Renaud-Basso, heads of such prominent companies and banks as Masdar, Indorama, ACWA Power, Vision Invest, DataVolt, Veon, Boeing, Air Products, SpaceX, Meta, John Deere, Franklin Templeton, Suez, EDF, Total Energies, Voltalia, Orano, Linde, Claas, Sojitz, Bomi, OTP Bank, Goldwind, Çalik, Çengiz, Aksa, JBIС, as well as representatives of international organizations and financial institutions – Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, International Financial Corporation, Asian Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank and International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation.

The main objectives of the Council are providing consultative support and an open dialogue between the Government of Uzbekistan and foreign investors on the significant areas of investment, industrial and technological, innovation development of the country based on the successful experience and world practices. 

Opening the current session, the Leader of our country noted the fruitful outcomes of the fourth Tashkent Investment Forum held the previous day and expressed gratitude to the Council members for their contributions and support in the development of New Uzbekistan.

The effectiveness of the Council's previous meetings was noted with satisfaction. Particularly, a completely new format of engagement with international financial institutions has been established, an efficient cooperation system has been introduced and the sectors of mutually beneficial partnership have expanded.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development invested a record amount – about $1 billion in Uzbekistan last year. Our country has become the Bank’s largest partner in the region.

Cooperation between international financial institutions and the private sector has also significantly intensified. In particular, the annual volume of joint projects with private companies and banks has exceeded $1 billion.

Companies participating in the work of the current Council session have launched new projects in such areas as green energy, waste recycling, energy storage, green hydrogen production and others.

In particular, AСWA Power, Masdar, Linde, Shanghai Renewable Energy and Total Energies companies through investing over $8 billion contribute greatly to the development of green economy.

Globally recognized companies are also actively entering Uzbekistan’s digital technology sector. DataVolt company is implementing projects to establish the region’s largest green data center, while Veon is developing a mobile super app based on artificial intelligence.

- I consider this a vivid manifestation of the high level of trust that foreign investors have in our reforms and policy of openness, – underlined the President.

The International Finance Corporation, along with companies such as Ernst & Young, Dentons, Knauf, and TBC being members of the Council have made several proposals to further improve national legislation based on international standards. Their new initiatives and ideas have been reflected in more than 10 laws, decrees and resolutions.

The Head of State announced that the basic tax rates for businesses will remain unchanged until 2028.

Overall, as a result of an improved investment climate, 5.5 thousand new enterprises with foreign capital have been established in Uzbekistan over the past two years, their total number reached 16 thousand.

It was noted that, in preparation for today’s meeting, more than 40 initiatives of foreign partners were selected. In particular, investors proposed measures to ensure the stability of tax legislation, increase the number of directly applicable laws, expand participation of private sector in infrastructure projects.

This year, public-private partnership projects worth nearly $4.5 billion have been launched in such sectors as road construction, transport, energy, water supply, irrigation and others. Regulatory documents are being developed to transition to international standards in financial reporting, as well as in environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG).

Based on the proposals received, additional working groups will be created on improving legislation on collateral, training professional personnel for foreign companies, enhancing corporate governance in local companies and improving tax administration.

It was proposed to enhance the independence of the Council’s secretariat and reorganize it to a separate legal entity. 

The Council members who addressed the session highly praised the outcomes of the large-scale reform program in New Uzbekistan. They expressed their gratitude to the Head of our state for the comprehensive support of investment activities and firm commitment to continuing mutually beneficial cooperation.

The government has been instructed to thoroughly review all initiatives and ensure their practical implementation. It was also instructed to adopt a separate “roadmap” for each project.