On December 3 this year, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan S. Umurzakov held a video conference meeting to discuss the localization of industrial production, as well as measures to further strengthen intra- and inter-industry cooperation as well as business development. The meeting was attended by heads of ministries, agencies, industry associations, commercial banks and local authorities.

In this context, in particular, issues related to the organization of the Republican Inter-Industry Industrial Fair in Uzbekistan in December this year were considered. The purpose of the event is to form value chains between domestic entrepreneurs and improve the quality of localized products to compete successfully in the domestic and foreign markets.

The need for a new, more systematic approach in preparation for the event was noted: instructions were given to create a special working group consisting of experts from ministries, agencies and industry associations to analyze the structure of imports by industries and regions, determine the most sought-after commodity positions in the domestic market and not produced in Uzbekistan, and also study the conjuncture of production capacities for these types of products.

The Center for Development of Investment Projects under the Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade was instructed to develop targeted investment projects to localize these products with the necessary technical and economic calculations, which will be presented to entrepreneurs on the industrial fair’s platform. Targeted work will be carried out to attract entrepreneurs to implement these projects and establish industrial cooperation with producers already working in the domestic market. Entrepreneurs who have expressed intention to participate in the implementation of certain projects will be able to count on co-financing and a whole bunch of additional benefits.

The expert subgroups created in the context of industries and regions will develop separate "Road Maps" for each project and will support their implementation, providing effective support in resolving emerging issues.

The importance of improving the efficiency of the Electronic Cooperation Portal under the Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade was emphasized. It was noted that the Portal should become a unified platform for establishing cooperative ties between entrepreneurs from different sectors and regions of the country and involvement of business representatives in production activities.

During the meeting, the responsible executives were given specific instructions for the quality preparation to the planned event and the prompt resolution of the existing organizational and content issues.

At the end of the meeting the task was also set to develop the Program for localization of goods manufacture on domestic and foreign markets for the years 2022-2023. The Program will include a list of projects formed on the basis of an in-depth analysis of the import structure and industrial potential of regions and industries, "Roadmaps" to improve the competitiveness and expand the production of domestic products that have analogues of foreign production in the local market, as well as specific practical measures of state support for entrepreneurs in the implementation of new investment projects, aimed at localization of production.