Uzbekistan: above-average income target by 2030

At the session of the UN General Assembly, the President of Uzbekistan outlined a strategic goal — to move to the group of countries with an above-average income by 2030. The goal setting is supported by the dynamics of basic indicators: according to official estimates, the poverty rate has been reduced to 6.6 percent, the coverage of preschool and higher education has been expanded, and programs for modernizing the real sector and developing "green" energy have been activated. Together with supporting small and medium-sized businesses, this creates the prerequisites for sustained productivity growth, diversification of the export basket, and an increase in the share of high-value-added industries.

The fiscal and investment logic of the stated trajectory implies the continuation of structural reforms-from improving the regulatory environment and access to finance to improving the quality of infrastructure and digitalization of public services. An increase in the share of net generation reduces the resource burden on the energy balance and frees up gas for industry and exports; the education sector forms a long circuit of human capital needed to scale technological production and services. At the same time, international initiatives of a humanitarian and social profile were announced — the World Summit against Childhood Cancer at the UN platform, the regular Forum of Asian Women and the World Youth Movement for Peace based in Uzbekistan. These projects strengthen the country's external agenda and form a network of partnerships needed to share knowledge and attract resources for the Sustainable Development Goals.

Synchronization of internal reforms and external cooperation sets subject guidelines for business and investors: predictability of rules, demand for technologies and competencies, expansion of sales markets through international initiatives. To achieve the status of an upper-middle-income country, the key factors will be productivity growth in industry and services, the contribution of innovation to output and exports, and the quality of institutions that determine the speed of approvals and the cost of capital. The announced 2030 framework translates the agenda into measurable metrics-employment, investment, energy, education - and raises the requirements for the effectiveness of programs that affect household well-being.