20.04.2026

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed the draft “Youth of New Uzbekistan – 2030” strategy.

This is the country’s first comprehensive youth policy strategy, aimed at strengthening the role of young people and unlocking their potential in building New Uzbekistan.

Today, the country’s population is 38 million, of whom 9.5 million, or nearly 25 percent, are young people aged 14 to 30. Every year, about 270,000 young families are formed in the country. This demographic factor requires a long-term and systematic approach to youth policy.

The strategy identifies priority areas such as ensuring youth employment and supporting entrepreneurship, developing quality and inclusive education, promoting foreign language learning and expanding vocational training, stimulating the labor market, and supporting young families. Special attention is also paid to enhancing cultural, physical, and intellectual development, expanding volunteer activities, strengthening youth health, and developing mechanisms for openness and engagement.

During the presentation, key target indicators to be achieved by 2030 were reviewed. In particular, plans include providing employment for 600,000 young people annually, attracting 900,000 people in volunteer activities by 2030, increasing the number of training centers to 90,000, enabling 450,000 young people to achieve at least a B2 level of foreign language proficiency, reducing youth crime, and providing annual mortgage support to at least 10,000 young families.

In the field of education, new measures are planned to ensure access to quality education for young people, support non-state education providers, expand opportunities for training centers in remote areas, and promote foreign language learning.

Specifically, it is proposed to allocate loans of up to 300 million soums for establishing training centers in remote and hard-to-reach areas, and to set the social and income tax rates for their teachers at 1 percent. In addition, it is proposed to waive the state fee for issuing a foreign passport for young people with a B2 level of language proficiency, and to reduce certain state fees by up to 50 percent for those with a C1 level who are initiating entrepreneurial projects.

The strategy places special emphasis on supporting young families. Within the mortgage program, it is planned to compensate the portion of loan interest rates exceeding the Central Bank’s base rate, thereby improving access to housing for young families.

To increase youth social engagement, it is planned to allocate grants of up to 100 million soums from the Volunteer Support Fund, involve active young people in paid internships in state institutions, establish a Presidential Award for creative youth, and create “Youth Streets” featuring bookstores and book cafés. In addition, minimum standards for youth infrastructure will be introduced and implemented in selected “youth districts and cities” in each region.

The strategy also addresses strengthening youth health, reducing mental health risks, and enhancing the psychological support system. In particular, it is planned to reduce the share of young people in the psychological risk group by 40 percent, establish a 24/7 psychological assistance center, and increase the proportion of youth regularly engaged in sports by 25 percent.

To strengthen open dialogue and objective analysis in youth policy, the Institute for the Study of Youth Problems and Training of Prospective Personnel will conduct sociological surveys on the needs and expectations of young people, which will serve as the basis for a National Youth Index. Special attention will also be given to addressing youth appeals. Meetings and dialogues with young people will be held every Thursday.

The development of international cooperation is also identified as a key direction of the strategy.

To this end, it is planned to launch international forums, global initiatives, intergenerational dialogue, the International Youth Congress, and other formats, as well as to hold major events marking August 12 – International Youth Day. The strategy also aims to ensure the participation of 100,000 young people from Uzbekistan in international programs. Furthermore, in cooperation with organizations such as the United Nations, the World Bank, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, internships in international organizations will be organized under the “Junior Professional Officer” program.

As part of the strategy’s implementation in 2026–2027, it is planned to carry out 56 projects across seven areas. In particular, under the “New Generation Entrepreneurs” program, it is planned to train 20,000 young people in cooperation with leading educational institutions such as Harvard, Stanford, MIT, and the London School of Business, select 1,000 business projects, and provide loans of up to 500 basic calculation units for up to three years to support their implementation. A mechanism for partial compensation of young entrepreneurs’ costs for connecting to engineering networks will also be introduced.

Across the country, initiatives such as the “Uzbekistan Loves Youth!” project, the “Hayot Fest” and “Talaba Fest” youth festivals, and the “Talaba Expo 2026” exhibition will be held. In addition, the work of the Robotics Association will be supported.

The Head of State emphasized that all initiatives and measures related to youth issues must, above all, serve to nurture an educated, healthy, proactive, and patriotic young generation, as well as ensure its rightful place in society. Responsible officials were given relevant instructions for the effective implementation of the strategy.