The Leader of Uzbekistan congratulated Ajay Banga on the successful reforms aimed at transforming the Bank’s operations to support economic growth in developing countries.

In turn, the head of the World Bank highly praised the results of large-scale reforms being carried out in Uzbekistan to build the New Uzbekistan.

The current issues related to expanding strategic partnerships with the World Bank Group were discussed.

It was noted with satisfaction that in recent years a high level of interaction has been achieved with this global financial institution, primarily in supporting and promoting priority programs and projects within the framework of socio-economic reforms.

Uzbekistan is one of the Bank’s largest partners in Europe and Central Asia. The portfolio of joint projects has exceeded $14 billion. A regional office of the World Bank has been opened in Tashkent. The outcomes of the recently held 3rd International Poverty Reduction Forum “Road to Prosperity” in the city of Namangan were highly appreciated.

The Head of State emphasized the importance of focusing the current Partnership Program on ensuring sustainable growth and on the accelerated, high-quality, and effective implementation of projects.

As priorities, the following areas were identified: poverty reduction, job creation for women and youth, comprehensive regional development under the new “Exemplary Mahalla” model, rural infrastructure, expanded support for private sector projects, expert assistance in the privatization of state assets, implementation of the decarbonization strategy, and transformation of the financial sector.

The importance of the Bank’s participation in promoting strategic infrastructure projects in the Central Asian region was emphasized.