Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- One of the world’s leading television channels Euronews broadcast a five-minute story about large-scale reforms in Uzbekistan, which every year make the country more attractive for foreign investment.

“Over the past 6 years, international investment in Uzbekistan has grown more than 10 times. Large-scale government reforms, launched in 2017 with an eye to the globalization of the Uzbek economy, stimulate the attraction of foreign capital to this Central Asian country,” the TV channel’s correspondent notes.

The story contains several successful examples of foreign investment in Uzbekistan. Thus, the US-Uzbekistan joint venture Silverleafe grows cotton in Jizzakh region. The whole process, from sowing to harvesting, is 100% automated. This year, Silverleafe will introduce a new technology - a digital tracking system for machine-picked cotton. All equipment is imported from USA. In total, Silverleafe has invested about US$40 million in the republic.

“People are wondering if these reforms are real or are they just words? So, being here for five years now, I can confirm that the reforms are really real,” says Dan Patterson, CEO of the Silverleafe joint venture.

His words are confirmed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

“Over the past 5 years, the bank has committed to allocate more than 3 billion euros for the implementation of 100 projects covering key sectors of the economy of Uzbekistan. The volume of investments in each next year exceeds the previous one. In the past three years, the republic has become the leading recipient of EBRD financing in Central Asia, with an eye to further increasing investment flows,” the story emphasizes.

Focus Speaker, EBRD Uzbekistan Director Alkis Drakinos is convinced that Uzbekistan is an excellent option for investment in almost all sectors of the economy due to the reforms carried out in the country:

“Uzbekistan has become an investment pole due to its history of reforms, including currency liberalization as a first step, and a law on public-private partnership. Then the green economy strategy until 2030 saw the light, the privatization of state-owned banks and organizations started, which is still ongoing. All these transformations send a strong signal to international investors about the potential of Uzbekistan, its needs and commitment to reform,” commented the head of the EBRD in Uzbekistan.

As the story says, the technology sector is attractive for investment. An example of such cooperation is clearly demonstrated by the London group Sturgeon Capital. She was the first to invest in startups and digital infrastructure in Uzbekistan through a special fund of US$25 million.

“We focus on three areas: fintech, marketplaces (usually e-commerce platforms) and software. Since we invested, the income of these companies has almost tripled, and we see a long-term perspective,” Kiyan Zandieh, Investment Director of Sturgeon Capital, shared the results of the cooperation.

The Minister of Investments, Industry and Trade of Uzbekistan Laziz Kudratov confirmed the chosen vector of the country’s development:

“We will continue to systematically, very scrupulously work to make the business environment, the investment climate in the country even more attractive. For us, the most important thing is to ensure the quality of investments, which will ensure sustainable, long-term development of the economy of Uzbekistan, make it competitive,” said Laziz Kudratov.