10-07-202646
On 3 April 2026, a public discussion was held in the Khorezm region on the topic "Institutional Foundations and Pressing Tasks for Reducing Poverty and Improving the Well-being of the Population in Uzbekistan." The event was organised at the initiative of the Khorezm regional branch of the Centre for Sustainable Development and was attended by representatives of state bodies, civil society institutions, higher educational establishments, and mass media.
The public discussion was opened with introductory remarks by the Deputy Khokim of the Khorezm region for Youth Policy, Social Development and Spiritual-Educational Affairs, Professor Sanʼatbek Salaev, and the Head of the regional branch of the Centre for Sustainable Development, Professor Bakhtiyar Ruzmetov. During the discussions, important issues such as poverty reduction policy, ensuring employment of the population, improving the social protection system, and the role of the mahalla institution were comprehensively analysed.
In recent years, Uzbekistan has implemented systemic reforms to reduce the level of poverty.
According to official data:
- In 2023, the poverty rate stood at 11%;
- In 2024 — 8.9%;
- In 2025 — 5.8%.
These figures demonstrate a significant reduction in the poverty level over a short period of time.
According to available data, in 2025 approximately 1.5 million people were lifted out of poverty, and 1,435 mahallas were registered as "poverty-free territories." This indicates that the target of halving poverty by the end of 2026, set three years ago, was effectively achieved already in 2025.
These positive changes are associated with the following factors: the introduction of the "mahallabay ishlash" (mahalla-based work) system; expansion of mechanisms supporting entrepreneurship; programmes aimed at creating new jobs; and a policy of diversifying household incomes.
Notwithstanding the reforms being implemented, a number of problems persist.
According to current data, the number of people living in poverty in the country amounts to approximately 2.2 million. The highest share of poverty is concentrated in the following regions:
- Samarkand region — 265,000 persons;
- Fergana region — 239,000 persons;
- Kashkadarya region — 238,000 persons;
- Andijan region — 214,000 persons.
A certain gap also persists between urban and rural areas. According to available data, the poverty rate in cities stands at 5.2 per cent, while in rural areas it is 6.4 per cent.
The share of informal employment in the economy remains at a certain level. This situation may lead to incomplete coverage by the social protection system, a weakening of pension provision, and restrictions on labour rights.
Although the real incomes of the population are growing overall, growth rates vary across regions.
In 2025, the highest growth rates in real per capita income were recorded in the following regions:
- Fergana region — 14.8%;
- Khorezm region — 8.7%;
- Tashkent city — 8.5%;
- Kashkadarya region — 8.5%.
In some regions, growth rates were below the national average.
During the discussion, the Head of the Department for Poverty Reduction and Employment of the Khorezm region, Zafar Allakuliev, delivered a presentation on "Mechanisms for Increasing Population Incomes and Ensuring Employment"; the Head of the Khorezm regional department of the National Agency for Social Protection under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Sherzod Berdiev, spoke on "Improving the System of Social Protection and Targeted Assistance"; the Director of the Training Course for Improving the Qualifications of Citizens' Self-Governance Body Employees under the Khorezm regional khokimiyat, Ikrom Matkarimov, addressed "The Role of the Mahalla Institution in Poverty Reduction"; the Executive Head of the Regional Research Centre of the Khorezm region, Associate Professor of Ma'mun University, Ghulom Sapaev, spoke on "Engaging the Population in Entrepreneurial Activity"; and the Leading Specialist of the Main Department of Economy and Finance of the Khorezm region, Sarvar Rakhmonov, presented on "Regional Development and the Creation of New Jobs."
During the discussions, participants put forward proposals regarding the institutional mechanisms influencing poverty reduction and improvement of the population's well-being in the regions, their effectiveness and possibilities for practical application, strategic priority directions of economic policy in this area, as well as programmes covering social protection mechanisms and aimed at increasing the economic activity of the population.
At the event, the Head of the Khorezm regional branch of the Centre for Sustainable Development, Professor B. Ruzmetov, noted that in recent years poverty reduction has become one of the priority directions of Uzbekistan's state policy, and that in this regard comprehensive programmes are being implemented to increase employment, expand the social protection system, raise household incomes, and develop entrepreneurship.
In particular, the establishment of a state institution responsible for poverty reduction and employment, the introduction of the "mahallabay ishlash" principle, and the phased improvement of social protection mechanisms have brought state policy in this sphere to a new level. As a result, certain positive changes are being observed in improving the well-being of the population and reducing poverty.
At the same time, problems persist in a number of regions and economic sectors. For this reason, it is of great importance to conduct a thorough analysis of these issues and to evaluate them within the framework of public discussion.
The Deputy Khokim of the Khorezm region for Youth Policy, Social Development and Spiritual-Educational Affairs, Professor Sanʼatbek Salaev, emphasised the need to intensify efforts in the following areas: development of the rural economy, modernisation of the vocational education system, increasing the employment of women and young people, and reducing the informal economy.
What tasks have been set for the responsible organisations?
During the discussion, the following priority tasks were defined for the relevant organisations of the region: strengthening targeted work — individual engagement with each family in need on the basis of the "mahallabay" system; ensuring employment — creating new jobs and reducing informal employment; developing entrepreneurship — engaging the population in business through preferential loans, subsidies, and grants; strengthening social protection — increasing the targeting and coverage of support measures; attention to the employment of youth and women — their broad involvement in the labour market; vocational education — intensifying the training of personnel in accordance with labour market requirements.
What conclusions and tasks were defined based on the results of the discussion?
At the conclusion of the public discussion, the following strategic directions were identified as important: increasing economic activity and creating new jobs in rural areas; strengthening the targeting of social policy and proactively reducing the risk of poverty; fully integrating the population into the social protection system by reducing the informal economy; reducing economic imbalances between regions; and ensuring coherence between economic reforms and social protection measures.
As the discussion participants emphasised, sustainable poverty reduction is inextricably linked not only to economic growth, but also to effective employment policy and a strong social protection system.
The public discussion held in the Khorezm region demonstrated that the reforms being implemented in the region to reduce poverty and improve the well-being of the population are yielding certain results. In particular, the decline in the poverty level, the expansion of employment opportunities, and the progressive improvement of the social protection system were noted as positive changes.
At the same time, the discussions also revealed a number of problems that still need to be resolved for sustainable poverty reduction. In particular, such factors as inter-regional disparities, informal employment, and income inequality require a systemic approach.
As the final conclusion, it was emphasised that the effectiveness of poverty reduction policy is directly dependent on the mutual coherence of economic reforms, employment measures, and social protection. By pursuing a targeted and coordinated policy in these directions, it is possible to ensure sustainable improvement of the population's well-being and social stability. Questions of interest to participants in the public discussion were answered by representatives of the relevant organisations.
Head of the Khorezm Regional Branchof the Centre for Sustainable Development,Professor B. Ruzmetov