The session of Expert Council on investment promotion was held in the conference hall of Poytaht hotel in Tashkent on 9 November.

Two institutional aspects of investment climate were discussed: establishment of one-stop-shop for foreign investors and the issues related to enhancement of investment dispute resolution system.

The event was organized by the joint project of UNDP and Ministry for Foreign Economic Relations, Investments and Trade "Capacity Building and Strengthening Foreign Trade and Investment Promotion Institutions in Uzbekistan" with support of "Business Forum of Uzbekistan".

Investment attractiveness of the country for foreign investors is directly linked with investment climate in the country. A good investment climate is formed not only by establishment of a favorable regulatory framework and investment stimulating policies, but also very much by degree of effectiveness of their actual implementation, especially with regard to protection of property rights of the investors.

International experience shows that inefficient and difficult administrative procedures for conducting business can be a serious barrier for FDI even in countries with fairly liberalized investment climate. For improving attractiveness, many countries established one-stop-shops for foreign investors designed to provide wide range of services to investors within already established regulatory framework.

Moreover, one of the most important indicators of investment climate is the ability of the host country to ensure security of property rights of foreign investors through effective institutional and legal mechanism for investment dispute resolution.

On 9 November, a meeting of the Expert Council on investment promotion was held with the purpose of analyzing the urgency of the issues of establishment of "one-stop-shop", identifying needs of investors on services of "one-stop-shop" and enhancement of the investment disputes resolution system in national legislation of Uzbekistan.

Representatives of foreign investors, think tanks, international organizations, as well as public and private sector participated in the event.

The meeting was mainly aimed at providing assistance in development of effective tools for foreign investment attraction. Currently, the project is working on elaboration reports, analyzing the prospects of establishment of "one-stop-shop" institution in Uzbekistan and recommending the ways for enhancement of investment dispute resolution system.

During the meeting of the Expert Council, which was held in business-like manner, participants exchanged their views and provided recommendations on the subject matter.