President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has announced a series of measures aimed at improving Uzbekistan’s business environment, expanding access to finance and simplifying regulations during the 6th Open Dialogue with entrepreneurs.
Over the past five years, the volume of loans allocated to businesses has nearly tripled, reaching 450 trillion soums. During the same period, entrepreneurs benefited from 650 trillion soums in tax and customs incentives.
Three new programs will be introduced to support businesses at different stages of development: “Business Start” for new entrepreneurs, “Business Lift” for companies that have launched production, and “Business Growth” for businesses entering a new stage of expansion.
Conditions for purchasing state assets will also be eased. The required down payment will be reduced from 30% to 15%, while entrepreneurs who make full payment within six months will receive a 25% discount. For companies connected to ASKUE and ASKUG systems and maintaining payment discipline, the advance payment will also be set at 15%.
A new “Export Navigator” system will be launched to provide entrepreneurs with comprehensive support at every stage of entering foreign markets.
The President also emphasized the need for a new approach to bringing businesses out of the informal economy. Instead of relying primarily on inspections, the state should guide entrepreneurs and help them operate legally and correctly.
A three-year moratorium will be introduced on inspections of small businesses that are not related to risks to human health or the interests of other entrepreneurs. In addition, the amount of all types of fines will be reduced by an average of two times.
Starting next year, the principle of the “presumption of the entrepreneur’s innocence” will be introduced in disputes between businesses and the state, strengthening the protection of entrepreneurs’ rights Half of all government services related to entrepreneurship will be transferred to the “silence means consent” principle.
More than 30 types of licenses and permits will soon be abolished, while the processing time for another 35 permits will be reduced by 2–3 times. Ten types of activities will be moved from the permit system to a notification-based procedure.
The announced measures are designed to reduce administrative barriers, expand business access to financial resources and strengthen the role of the private sector in Uzbekistan’s economic growth.
As the President emphasized, maintaining high economic growth is essential to further improving people’s living standards.
