10-07-202656
On November 19, 2025, the International Nordic University hosted a republican scientific-practical conference entitled "The Uzbekistan–2030 Strategy: Analysis of Ongoing Reforms, Challenges and Solutions," encompassing key directions of the country's development.
The forum focused primarily on the scientific analysis—with the participation of the academic community—of reforms in priority sectors including public administration, economics, ecology, foreign policy, digital transformation, tourism, and social development, as well as discussion of their practical outcomes and identification of prospective objectives.
The conference was attended by Iskandar Urakbaev, expert of the Sustainable Development Center, who presented a paper entitled "Food Security in the Uzbekistan-2030 Strategy: Priority Directions of State Policy in Ensuring Sustainable Development."
The globalization of the world economy, various crises—including pandemics, natural disasters, and geopolitical challenges—are steadily heightening the need for states to ensure food security. In particular, approximately 673 million people faced hunger in 2024, representing 8.3% of the world's population. During the same period, approximately 2.3 billion people experienced moderate or severe food insecurity.
Under such circumstances, food security has acquired strategic importance for every state. For Uzbekistan, this issue is likewise of priority significance, as it directly affects the country's socio-economic stability, as well as the living standards and welfare of the population.
The paper addressed the following directions:
– The implementation of comprehensive reforms in Uzbekistan's agricultural sector with the aim of ensuring food security;
– The reduction of certain land areas traditionally specialised in cotton and grain cultivation, with priority attention redirected towards the production of vegetables, leguminous crops, and melons;
– The introduction of cluster and cooperative systems in agriculture, which have significantly enhanced processing, storage, and export capacity;
– The allocation of preferential state credits and subsidies to household farming enterprises.
At the same time, the significant contribution of innovative solutions and modern technologies to strengthening food security was emphasised. In particular, it was noted that the introduction of blockchain technologies is yielding tangible results in product quality control and ensuring supply chain transparency. Special emphasis was placed on the achievement of reduced product losses through the improvement of the agro-logistics system and the modernisation of storage facilities.
The conference discussed a number of challenges in ensuring food security and proposals aimed at addressing them.
In particular, special attention was devoted to the following issues:
– Climate change, drought, and water scarcity are exerting a negative impact on agricultural productivity.
– Global crises—pandemic, economic instability, and global economic fluctuations—pose threats to food supply.
– A shortage of scientific research and qualified personnel is impeding development within the sector.
As proposals, the necessity of establishing effective training and capacity-building programmes, intensifying scientific research in the sector, and improving the personnel training system was noted.
Upon conclusion of the event, proposals and recommendations were consolidated, and forthcoming plans and tasks were identified for achieving the Uzbekistan–2030 Strategy and the Sustainable Development Goals. This is intended to contribute to the more consistent implementation of the reforms being carried out in the country.