Current tasks in digitalization discussed

On December 20, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev chaired a meeting on priority tasks for developing information technology in industries and regions and digitalizing public administration.

Based on the requirements of the time, Uzbekistan pays great attention to improving the telecommunications infrastructure and digitalization of spheres and industries. This year alone, 100 software projects have been developed as part of the digital transformation of education, banking, finance, customs, agriculture, geology, and cadastre. Over 500 new IT companies were created, and $475 million of foreign direct investment entered the sector.

By the end of the year, the volume of industry services is expected to reach 10 trillion UZS, and their exports will exceed $300 million. This indicator grew rapidly in Tashkent, Samarkand, and Andijan regions. In Surkhandarya region, the export of IT services worth more than $1 million was also established for the first time. More than 20 thousand young people in the regions independently engage in programming and sell their products through international online platforms.

The creation of additional conditions for the development of the industry was determined:

– IT companies in the regions will be located in unused buildings free of charge for one year;

– talented programmers will be provided with computers and equipment in annual installments;

– companies that hire more than 50 IT specialists will be compensated for up to 15 percent of wage costs during the year;

– exporting enterprises will be compensated for 50 percent of the costs of attracting foreign specialists and participating in international conferences.

To bring the IT Park to the international level, its subsidiaries will be opened in Germany and Saudi Arabia.

In general, due to new opportunities in 2024, the volume of IT services can be doubled.

For this, personnel who speak foreign languages and have technological skills are needed. In this regard, the Ministry of Digital Technologies has been tasked with selecting 8 thousand of the most talented young people next year and training them in a program that meets the standards of prestigious international companies.

Next year, the project “At least two programmers in each mahalla” will be launched, and 20 thousand people will be employed as part of the “Inclusive Digitalization” project jointly with American partners.

In 2026, the International Informatics Olympiad will be held for the first time in Uzbekistan. Competitions will be held to prepare for it. The best schoolchildren will be trained with the participation of qualified foreign trainers.

The Head of state emphasized that digitalization should begin with the mahalla.

Currently, workers in the mahalla system are provided with tablets and computers. However, they are not taking full advantage of digital solutions. For example, a citizen who turns to a youth leader for a subsidy must bring a certificate of unemployment from the chairperson of the mahalla, the assistant hokim, or the employment department.

Therefore, the responsible persons were instructed to launch a unified “Digital Mahalla” platform and train the “Mahalla Seven” in information systems.

The state of digitalization in ministries and industries was analyzed at the meeting. It was emphasized that cost reduction in economic sectors can only be achieved through digitalization.

In some ministries and agencies, work on digitalization is progressing slowly. For example, the Digital Health project is delayed, slowing down health insurance implementation. Due to the lack of an electronic registry of cancer patients, there are delays in the payment of benefits to them.

A digital system for monitoring the trade and use of pesticides has not been introduced in agriculture. In Tashkent, the “Khalq Nazorati” (People’s Control) system, which was positively received by the population, needs to be improved.

The need to quickly fill these gaps and accelerate digitalization in all areas was emphasized.

“A leader who refuses digitalization is a leader who does not strive to end corruption”, the President said.

Improving the infrastructure of the sphere will be touched upon, particularly increasing the speed of Internet access. It was noted that in some regions the Internet speed is low, 20 percent of international highways are not covered by mobile Internet. The task has been set to attract foreign investment to develop digital infrastructure.

At the same time, the need to strengthen cybersecurity and develop and implement uniform cybersecurity requirements for all electronic payment systems was noted.

The Head of state was instructed to carefully work out plans to achieve next year such indicators as increasing the volume of IT services to 20 trillion UZS, exports to $800 million, introducing 130 information systems, and the complete digitalization of 750 government services.

The Head of state exchanged views with ministers, hokims, and young programmers on current issues facing the sphere.