September 19, 2007
Politics:
Central Election Commission sets Presidential elections day
President decrees to strengthen social support of pensioners
Economics:
CICU to hold workshop on enterprise management development
Xerox opens its new office in Uzbekistan
ICT Summit 2007: new issues and solutions
Awards the Best Consultant of 2007 in finance and taxation
Society:
Uzbek lawyers learn family conflict resolution, women's rights
UWED students, staff attend intensive course on Library and E-Recourses
POLITICS
CENTRAL ELECTION COMMISSION SETS PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS DAY
The Central Election Commission of Uzbekistan announced on December 23, 2007 as the day of Presidential elections. The election campaign will start on September 21, commission chairman Mirzo-Ulugbek Abdusalomov said, UzA reported.
At its Tuesday session, the election commission passed a resolution on announcing the start of the election campaign. It also approved the plan of events of election commissions to prepare and hold the elections.
The lists of election districts with indication of the number of voters and addresses of the district election commissions will be published before October 9, Abdusalomov said.
The district election commissions will be formed by October 14, and divisional election commissions by November 13.
According to Article 24 of the Law on election of the President of Uzbekistan, political parties and citizens have the right to nominate candidates to the post of the President.
A political party can nominate its candidate only if it was registered by the Justice Ministry at least six months prior to the announcement of the election campaign.
Any citizen or a group of citizens having the right to vote may form an initiative group of voters consisting of a minimum of 300 people.
The law states that the nomination may start 65 days before the elections and end 45 days prior to the elections.
The election campaign starts from the date of registration of candidates by the election commission, which is on November 18.
Both the political parties and the initiative groups of voters are granted the equal right to use the mass media for their campaigns and hold meetings with voters.
In accordance with Article 5 of the above-named law, observers from political parties, voters groups, journalists, as well as foreign states and international organizations and movements have the right to participate in all events related to preparation and holding the elections, including nomination meetings, as well as the voting and the vote-counting process.
The Central Election Commission said it would create all conditions for the open and transparent conduction of the free, just and democratic elections of the President of Uzbekistan.
PRESIDENT DECREES TO STRENGTHEN SOCIAL SUPPORT OF PENSIONERS
On September 17, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov signed Decree "On the measures to strengthen social support for pensioners".
Since the first days of independence of Uzbekistan the most priority task is the pursuance of strong social policy aimed at consecutive and purposeful rise of living standards and welfare of the population, ensuring address social protection of the most vulnerable groups – pensioners, disabled and single old people.
The high rates of economic growth, low inflation, achieved over the past years, create a solid basis for successful implement of these large-scale social tasks.
President Karimov has set a strategically important task – to ensure every three years the increase of incomes and wages of the population at the average of 2-2.5 times in order to reach the level of the countries that maintain the high level of welfare for their population.
The care for pensioners, improving the conditions and quality of their life play key role in the system of increase of living standards of the population. The legislative base and mechanisms of pension system of the Republic of Uzbekistan are constantly being improved. The limiting of time record taken to calculate pension was abolished in the country in 2002, and a new additional mechanism of pension system based on the principles of individual accumulation of pension funds in the accumulative accounts of the citizens was introduced in 2005.
The decree is an important stage of implementing specific tasks on providing with the further rise of pension – the main source of incomes of nearly 3 million citizens of Uzbekistan who reached the retirement age.
The important feature of this decree, taking effect on October 1, 2007, is that the rise of pension will be provided due to increase of the limit sizes of incomes used to calculate pension from the sevenfold to eightfold size of the minimum wages. The matter is that the average monthly wages has been growing more rapidly than the minimum wage in the recent years, and the share of workers with higher income is growing among the people who reached the age of retirement.
The introduction of this norm starting form 1 October this year allows to increase the sizes of pensions for the major part of pensioners who received relatively high wages before retirement, raise their welfare standards, strengthen the principles of social justice, increase their motivation to the high paid job, population's most active involvement in the development and reform of the country's economy.
It is worthy to note that the new presidential decree applies not only to the citizens who will be retired after 1 October 2007, but first of all to those who are already retired now.
The implementation of the measures stipulated by the Decree of the President of Uzbekistan "On the measures to strengthen social support for pensioners" will be financed from the sources of off-budget Pension Fund, and the State Budget if needed. More than 20 billion soums will be allocated in 2007, and over 100 billion sums in 2008.
ECONOMICS
CICU TO HOLD WORKSHOP ON ENTERPRISE MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT
Enterprise Management Development workshop will be held on October 13-14 for the managers of leading companies of Uzbekistan in Tashkent. The training will be conducted based on the unique programme of the International Trade Centre UNCTAD/WTO.
The event is being organized by the Enterprise Management Development Centre under the Chamber of Industry and Commerce with the assistance of the "Business Forum of Uzbekistan" Joint Project of the CICU and the UN Development Programme.
Within the frame of the training, a selected number of qualified certified experts who have passed the six-month training of the International Trade Centre will conduct an intensive programme of training based on the special ITC methodology. Upon completion of the training participants will be awarded ICT certificates.
Enterprise Management Development is an intensive two-day programme, which includes training courses on improvement of enterprise management, expanding export, forming a competitive enterprise, developing a business management system, and the instruments of business development.
The programme also includes the use of digital technology and solutions, and the instruments of assessing the enterprise's development needs, the administration of business, the application of the knowledge and skills in specific sectors of the economy, according to the tasks of the business and the competitiveness targets, as well as some managerial aspects, such as creation of a competitive business, separation of business and management, development of strategy, etc.
XEROX OPENS ITS NEW OFFICE IN UZBEKISTAN
The opening ceremony of the new office of Xerox in Uzbekistan was held at the Intercontinental hotel on September 14. The new office in the capital expands the possibilities of Xerox on giving timely consultation and high qualified technical support for clients and partners of the company, according to the Business Information portal Uzreport.com.
"The work of the new office will be directed to form and develop constant relations with the regional clients," said the head of the representative office of Xerox Ltd in Central Asia, Yulian Grigorov, at the press conference.
"Xerox corporation actively expands the geography of its presence. Xerox has a representative office in Kazakhstan with two fully functioning offices and we are expanding our activity by opening the office in Tashkent. We expect that opening local representative office will not only contribute to strengthening the position of the company in the region, but it will make its contribution to the development programme of computerization and information-communication technologies of the country by means of providing Uzbek IT-market with the advanced technology and affordable products," Yulian Grigorov noted.
Founded in 2004, the division of Xerox Eurasia unites 23 countries including Russia, CIS states, Baltic states, Asia, Caucasus and Eastern Europe. It is headquartered in Moscow and the company's regional offices are based in Almaty, Astana, Belgrad, Bucharest, Vladivostok, Yekaterinburg, Kiev, Minsk, Novosibirsk, Riga, Rostov-on-Don, St. Petersburg, Sofia, Tashkent and Tyumen. All of the Xerox Eurasia representative offices can provide full range of services on the sale and technical support of Xerox equipment. Xerox Eurasia affiliate network includes more than 1,000 major partners and resellers. Xerox Eurasia's after-sales service system totals over 550 service centers.
From the beginning of 2007 Xerox put into the market 28 new devices, including 10 full featured printers, which is twice more than in 2006. More than two thirds of the Xerox equipment sale turnover is the share of the products which were put into the market over the past two years. Full colour equipment sale turnover grew by 12% in the second quarter and now makes up 38% from the total turnover of Xerox which exceeds the same figure of 2006 by 4%.
The supply in the Uzbek IT-market, according to experts, virtually does not fall behind from the world tendencies. The general growth rates make up about 10-15% annually. All the new devices that appear in the market of developed countries can be bought at the company. All these depend on the client's wish and the availability of technical equipment in the warehouse.
"Opening the new Xerox office in Tashkent will immediately enable us to solve several tasks: the coordination of orders and shipments of Xerox equipment will be more efficient; our clients and partners in Uzbekistan will have an opportunity to get consultations about products in the state language as well. We put a task to broaden the partnership networks, attracting prospective customers and increasing the sales volume of Xerox equipment soon," regional representative of Xerox in Uzbekistan, Otabek Kurbanov, added.
ICT SUMMIT 2007: NEW ISSUES AND SOLUTIONS
The Fifth Summit on Information and Communication Technologies – ICT SUMMIT 2007, will be held on September 27-28 in Tashkent, Uzreport.com Business Information portal reported.
From year to year the ICT Summit draws the increasing attention of ICT experts and has become one of the main events in the sphere of ICT in Uzbekistan, and causes interest of the international experts of other near and far countries.
This year, the ICT SUMMIT celebrates its fifth anniversary and it will be main event, which will conclude ICT week "InfoCom 2007". ICT SUMMIT creates a unique platform for representatives of government, educational, non-governmental organizations, academic and business communities to summarize the work of ICT week, define new trends, achievements and benefits of implementation of ICTs in various areas and jointly discuss and identify measures to address issues emerging from the wide-scale application and rapid development of ICTs.
Over 300 delegates from countries such as Azerbaijan, Canada, Germany, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Netherlands, Russia, Thailand, United Kingdom, Ukraine and others will participate in the work of the Summit.
Representatives of state agencies, local and foreign IT companies, IT - experts from different areas, and also representatives of the international organizations are invited to participate in the work of the Summit.
The work of the ICT Summit 2007 will be organized in the form of plenary sessions and thematic sections. The general topics cover tendencies and main changes in regulatory policy, achievements and issues in realizations of national ICT development programs, infrastructure development and other relative issues.
The ICT SUMMIT 2007 is organized by Coordination Council for development of computerization and information and communication technologies, The Committee on Press and IT issues of Oliy Majlis Legislative Chamber, the Communication and Information Agency of Uzbekistan (UzACI), UNDP office in Uzbekistan through "ICT Policy" Project and Association of IT Companies and Organizations of Uzbekistan.
In view of processes of globalization, ICT entered almost all fields of economy. Uzbekistan pays special attention to develop ICT in all spheres. Under the initiative of the Government, the Program for development of computerization and ICTs in 2002-2010 is being implemented. The national legislation in ICT sphere is being updated to meet the requirements of international law, is regulating fields of author's and allied rights, electronic signature, e-commerce, e-payments, electronic document circulation. The important question in construction of the open information society on principles of respect of the national priorities of economic, social and cultural development is ensuring the information security.
It is important to note that ICT Summit allows experts, government agencies, international organizations and private sector to substantially analyze the condition of the ICT market, to get acquainted with new achievements in this field, to find new reliable partners, to attract additional investments for further development of ICTs in Uzbekistan.
AWARDS THE BEST CONSULTANT OF 2007 IN FINANCE AND TAXATION
On September 7, the "Public Finance Reform in Uzbekistan" Project of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) participated in the Award Ceremony - the best professionals in accounting of the year of 2007.
UNDP's project "Public Finance Reform in Uzbekistan" has been continuously supporting the initiatives, focused on promotion of interests and protection of rights of businessmen, auditors and accountants, as well as making substantial contribution to the market reforms development in Uzbekistan by actively participating in this process and assisting the development of tax counseling in Uzbekistan.
The event was jointly organized by the National Association of Accountants and Auditors of Uzbekistan, Chamber of Auditors of Uzbekistan, Association of Teachers of Business Disciplines of Uzbekistan, Norma Hamkor, Ltd., CIPA examination network represented by "Profesional Bugalterlar Sertifikatsiyasi, Ltd.", USAID "Accounting/Certified International Professional Accountant" project (A/CIPA) in Uzbekistan, implemented by the Pragma Corporation.
At the ceremony, UNDP awarded the winner in nomination "Best Tax and Finance Consultant of the Year". Ms. Zoya Tuchkova, Head of Unit of State Tax Inspection, were named the Best consultant in the field of finance and taxation in 2007 for demonstration high professionalism in her profession. She was awarded with honorary prize and diploma.
Accountants and auditors from many professional association and private companies of Uzbekistan participated in the contest.
UNDP's project "Public Finance Reform in Uzbekistan" continues its efforts toward developing the profession of Tax consultant in Uzbekistan and building the capacity of national experts, working in this field.
SOCIETY
UZBEK LAWYERS LEARN FAMILY CONFLICT RESOLUTION, WOMEN'S RIGHTS
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Women's Committee of Uzbekistan organized a seminar for lawyers of Uzbekistan to acquaint them with family conflict resolution and women's rights protection in criminal and civil laws.
About 25 lawyers from various parts of Uzbekistan are taking part in the work of the three-day seminar, which opened at Poytaht Hotel in Tashkent on 17 September. The seminar titled "Family conflict resolution and women's rights protection in criminal and civil laws. Experience of Russia and Uzbekistan" will discuss such issues as gender equality and stereotypes, the protection of women's rights, legislation in the sphere of domestic conflicts prevention, and working with victims of a family conflict.
The participants will learn the experience of law-enforcement bodies of Russia in family conflict resolution and domestic violence prevention, the cases on the protection of honor and dignity in Russia, and the role of lawyers in the prevention of domestic violence. They will also get acquainted with the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the recommendations of CEDAW Committee to Uzbekistan.
Ms Kyoko Postill, UNDP Deputy Resident Representative in Uzbekistan, said: "Uzbekistan can be proud of its efforts and achievements, in the past years, in promoting gender equality and advancement of women. Uzbekistan has achieved gender parity in primary, secondary and vocational education, thus meeting one of the Millennium Development Goals much earlier than the targeted date of 2015."
She added that, at the same time, Uzbekistan still faces some challenges as do many other countries. For example, the country should carry out legislative reforms in a number of gender-related areas and improve awareness among parliamentarians, law enforcement agencies, civil servants, social workers, youth and the general population on the CEDAW Convention.
The seminar is organized by the Women's Committee of Uzbekistan and UNDP project "Legislative and Institutional Capacity Development for Women's Empowerment in Uzbekistan". The project aims to support and build the capacity of the government, civil society and mass media in reducing the gender gaps via raising awareness of and implementing the recommendations of the CEDAW Committee to Uzbekistan. It is envisaged to achieve the goal via building the capacity of journalists, improving their professionalism and gender issues coverage in mass media.
The CEDAW Convention adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly, is an international documents on the rights of women. Uzbekistan was the first Central Asian country to ratify the convention in 1995 and has reported twice to the CEDAW Committee on its implementation.
UWED STUDENTS, STAFF ATTEND INTENSIVE COURSE ON LIBRARY AND E-RECOURSES
Intensive course on the "Library and E-Resources" was conducted at the UNDP-supported Resource Center and Library of the University of World Economy and Diplomacy (UWED) for nearly 90 graduate students and faculty staff members on September 4-10.
Dr. Hwichool Kim, Professor of Han-Yang University (Seoul) and tutor of the National Library of Korea delivered the course.
Participants from various Departments of UWED studied and discussed in depth thesis writing, articles writing and work on methodical aid and e-materials for a teaching process; library and distance education through lectures and seminars as well as Internet resources.
As a Chairman of Korea Information Search Committee, Dr. Kim presented modern tools and standards on using of e-resources through University's teaching and study process for separate group of students and academic staff members.
This event was organized in the framework of the UNDP project "Enhancing the Capacity of the University of World Economy and Diplomacy to Support the Foreign Policy of Uzbekistan". The project aims to strengthen the capacity of the University to support the development and implementation of the foreign policy of Uzbekistan, the course will be dedicated to reaching one of its main target, namely improvement and introduction of new methods for bringing the UWED teaching and study process in line with international standards in education for the ensuing career in foreign service.