Representatives of other government and local authorities, donor organizations, business associations, agrifirms, farms, enterprises and private companies working in the area of fruits and vegetables production, processing and exports, as well as local service providers to fruits and vegetables sector were also invited to this event. Goals and content of the Project will be presented by the Regional Director of the AgLinks Project, Dr. CharlesMay and the Country Project Director in Uzbekistan, Mr. Sharof Mashrabi. The participants will discuss joint action plans targeted at improving efficiency of the fruits and vegetables sector in Uzbekistan.

In recent years the world market of food products has witnessed a steady growth in demand for many types of fruits and vegetables. Uzbekistan has a huge production and export potential in the area of fruits and vegetable growing and processing. The Government of Uzbekistan has adopted a number of legal and regulatory documents targeting development of fruits and vegetables sector and enhancing its competitiveness.

The AgLinks Project will render assistance in building agricultural capacity of the country. The Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan has designated the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources as the main counterpart of the Project. The AgLinks Project is a regional program of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), having the primary goal of developing agricultural linkages throughout sectors of targeted products.

The main objective of the AgLinks Project is to increase fruits and vegetables yields and production efficiency through improvement of linkages among producers of fruits and vegetables (farm entities and dehkan farms) and local service providers (agrifirms, processing enterprises, seed, fertilizer, chemicals suppliers, and transportation service providers). The project will be implemented up to September 2011 and will cover over 1100 dehkan farms and farm entities, 6-8 agrifirms, as well as, nearly 20 local service providers working in fruits and vegetables sector in Namangan, Ferghana, Samarkand and Tashkent provinces of Uzbekistan.

The Project will provide assistance to local agricultural entities in the development of strategic development plans, establishing long-term mutually beneficial relationships with exporters and importers, as well as improvement of management and general operation of agrifirms. The Project will promote the introduction of modern technology and equipment, improving access to credit and financial resources.

It is also envisaged to provide assistance in research and planning of elimination of administrative and legislative constraints which prevent the smooth development of fruits and vegetables sector in Uzbekistan with participation of al stakeholders. Aglinks is one of many USAID Projects in Uzbekistan, rendering assistance in the development of economy, health care and agriculture of the country.