November 10, 2008
Economics:
NBU, ICD sign memo of understanding
Boeing, Uzbekistan Airways announce order of four 767s
New standards of microcrediting
First gold from sulphide ores
Construction industry development vector
Society:
Anesthesiologists exchange experience in Samarkand
Practical trainings to be used
Big world in children’s eyes
ECONOMY
NBU, ICD SIGN MEMO OF UNDERSTANDING
National Bank of Uzbekistan for Foreign Economic Activity (NBU) and Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) signed a memorandum of understanding to further develop economic cooperation between Uzbekistan and ICD, Uzreport Information Portal reported.
The memorandum envisages establishment of strategic partnership and development of mutual beneficial long-term and effective cooperation between the NBU and ICD, assist to expansion and modernization of private businesses, using Islamic finance instruments and mechanisms, stimulation of development of investment opportunities, contribute to diversification of financial products, etc.
ICD also plans in future provide technical assistance to prepare, finance and implementation of the projects, including modern technologies.
BOEING, UZBEKISTAN AIRWAYS ANNOUNCE ORDER OF FOUR 767S
Boeing and Uzbekistan Airways have finalized an order for four 767-300ER (Extended Range) airplanes, the Boeing said on 7 November. The order is valued at US$597 million at list prices. Including this announcement, Uzbekistan Airways has now ordered six Boeing jetliners (two previously ordered 787-8s and the four 767-300ERs), Uzreport Information Portal reported.
"We are eager to strengthen our Boeing fleet with 767s to continue competing successfully and meet continued demand for air travel in our region," said Valeri Tyan, general director of Uzbekistan Airways. "Today's order is yet another step forward in our strong relationship with Boeing. We look forward to operating the 787 and benefiting from its advanced performance features. Until then, the 767-300ER is the economical and logical choice to fulfill our interim capacity targets and our growth plans."
Uzbekistan Airways, based in Tashkent, is Uzbekistan's national airline. In addition to the airplanes ordered, the airline operates six Boeing 757-200s and five 767-300ERs.
"Boeing and Uzbekistan Airways have a very special relationship, based on long-standing mutual knowledge and trust," said Craig Jones , Boeing Commercial Airplanes vice president of Sales for Russia & Central Asia. "These 767 models provide excellent efficiency, reliability and outstanding passenger comfort for Uzbekistan Airways' international routes."
The 767-300ER is one of three passenger models in the 767 family, which includes the 767-200ER and 767-400ER, and is the baseline for the 767-300ER freighter. The 767-300ER seats up to 350 passengers and flies up to 5,975 nautical miles (11,065 kilometers). Boeing has orders for more than 1,000 767s, including 562 767-300ERs.
NEW STANDARDS OF MICROCREDITING
The National Association of Micro-Finance Organisations and Credit Unions, jointly with the MicroFinance Centre, ICCO and MicroCredit Basnk conducted a training seminar on the "new standards of social reporting for microcredit organizations and credit unions" last week in the conference hall of Rovshan hotel.
The seminar was organized with the purpose of familiarizing the management of credit unions and microfinance institutions with the trends observed in the world market in terms of the improvement of social impact of micro-finance activity.
CGAP, MIX and other members of social group for the issues relating to social impact developed a set of indicators of social influence, which provide new standards of reporting in the sector. In order to help investors, government and regulatory agencies verify the sincerity of the intentions of the micro-finance organizations' in servicing the target clients and real assistance in achievement of social results. The indicators of social influence are the new generation indicators. They will be presented in the reports by all microfinance organizations in the MIX market starting from 2009. With their introduction the microfinance industry will enter a new era of increased transparency.
Among the participants of the training were the top managers of credit unions, micro-credit organisations, MicroCreditBank, as well as the representatives of donor institutions. Participants had an opportunity to familiarize with the new instruments of measuring social indicators and their application in practice.
FIRST GOLD FROM SULPHIDE ORES
Navoi Mining and Smelting Complex (NMSC), one of the largest mining and smelting enterprises of Central Asia, started processing gold sulphide ores in Kokpatas deposit (Central Kyzyl-Kum) on Biox technology, Uzbekistan Today reported.
As Kuvandik Sanakulov, Director General of NMSC informed the Uzbekistan Today, “the first milling unit on sulphide ore has been launched and production of gold containing floated fine with its further processing by biological method has started.” Thus, the first gold, extracted from sulphide ores of the deposit, was obtained in hydrometallurgical plant-3 (HMP-3) in Uchkuduk. Previously, NMSC didn’t have a technology and production capacities enabling processing gold containing sulphide ores and processed only oxidized ores. By the end of 2008, the NMSC is planning to launch the first stage of bioleaching floors in HMP-3. Kokpatas ore will be delivered to gold extracting factory and in 2009 the second stage with Daugistau deposits involved will be launched. The first stage will be introduced gradually with launching of 4 modules.
Construction of the floor is carried out by NMSC branches; delivery and installation of technological equipment is implemented by Engineering Dobersek GmbH of Germany.
NMSC started construction of gold-mining complex in Kokpatas and Daugistau deposits in 2004. This complex contains bioleaching floor on HMP-3 basis and mining enterprises. The total worth of project amounts at $150 mln. It is financed by own means of NMSC as well as by credits of foreign banks. Navoi MSC is one of the biggest gold producers in Central Asia. The plant is in full state property. Its main gold ore resource is Muruntau deposit (Central Kyzyl-Kum). The new gold extraction complex, where sulphide ores will be processed, will become the second stage of HMP-3.
CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT VECTOR
By the results of 9 months of 2008 about $94 mln of investment has been attracted by companies of Uzstroymaterialy JSC (Uzbek construction materials).
The total production volume compared to the same period of the last year increased by 5.8%, while the growth rates of ceramic tile production being 122.7%, construction glass – 107.1%, cement – 102.7%. Within the localization program enterprises of the industry produced more than 39 bln soums worth of production of local raw.
According to the target program of investment projects of 2009, construction industry will attract $90.73 mln of direct foreign investment and credits. US $32mln of these funds will be directed to a new construction and $58.72mln to reconstruction and modernization. The main stress will be made on two projects: organization of a gypsum plasterboard articles production by the KNAUF technology in KNAUF Gips Bukhara LLC with production capacity of 20mln square meters of gypsum plasterboard, and a project on improvement of operating production with construction of a new line on dry method cement production (clinker) in Bekabadcement JSC with production capacity of 850 000 tones of cement clinker.
At present, investors construct three cement manufactures by means of direct foreign investments. Besides, it is considered to build new cement plants with 5.4 mln tones production capacity. They include two projects in Surkhandariya region: the first is of 1.7 mln tones of cement production capacity at the cost of about $300 mln and the second one is of 360 000 tones of cement output capacity at the cost of $50mln. The Jizzakh project will be of 1mln tones capacity, another in Kashkadariya region of 1.5 mln tones and the Tashkent region project will be of 800 000 tones of cement production capacity.
In total, it is planned to attract more than $343 mln of investments into this sector by 2011, raise production volume twice, increase export up to 2.2 times, number of enterprises with ISO 9001 quality management systems – 14 times, cut energy consumption down to 83.5 tons of equivalent fuel per 1mln soums of article production.
SOCIETY
ANESTHESIOLOGISTS EXCHANGE EXPERIENCE IN SAMARKAND
Last week a course of the European Anesthesiologists Education Fund opened in Samarkand. Specialists of Bukhara, Navoi, Kashkadarya, Surkhandarya and Jizzakh regions and doctors of leading clinics of Tashkent, Samarkand, Moscow, Indianapolis and Copenhagen participated in the event.
“European Anesthesiologists Education Fund courses are spent worldwide. For six years every autumn and spring our organization gathers leading anesthesiologists-resuscitation specialists of Uzbekistan,” commented Lyudmila Nazirova, Chairwoman of Uzbek national branch of the Fund. “Every time we discuss a specific division of anesthesiology “in private”, where every participant can share his experience and discuss various situations with colleagues. An obligatory component of the course’s program is a meeting with leading foreign anesthesiologists. Our programs also include information about the latest scientific developments, new pharmaceutical products. This time we broadly discussed issues of anesthesiology in neurology, peripheral and regional anesthesia and also the pain therapy.”
The healthcare system needs qualified anesthesiologists-resuscitation specialists, they play an important role in improvement of high technological medical aid. Today each of 3000 anesthesiologists of Uzbekistan can improve qualification in the Institute of Doctors Training on anesthesiology departments or in leading medical establishments of the country. The European Anesthesiologists Education Fund courses became a great addition to these opportunities. Besides, participants get distribution material to use in their practice as reference.
PRACTICAL TRAININGS TO BE USED
A rural medical station opened in the center of Tashkent. It is located on the territory of Tashkent Medical Academy and was designed to prepare senior bachelor students for independent professional activity. These days specialists of the Ministry of Health presented the new medical station.
“Everything here is as in a real rural medical station,” marked Shakhnoza Gulyamova, head of the new laboratory of Tashkent Medical Academy, and told about the purpose of the new object:
“Earlier, the future general practitioners fixed their knowledge during practical trainings in the core medical establishment. Everything will follow the same script, only senior, 6-7th-year students will come to our rural medical station. Here they will have a “dry run” of their future professional activity.
In this laboratory students will not only learn what a rural medical station is and how it works but will test their general practitioner’s knowledge stipulated in state diagnostics and treatment standards. Here there will be sessions, where students will imitate rural medical station’s activity by splitting into patients and doctors.
We are sure that the innovation will give confidence to future specialists. Besides, in our laboratory, they will be able to use their knowledge in practice. It will undoubtedly improve the quality of general practitioners’ training, and, as a result, will improve rural medical service.”
BIG WORLD IN CHILDREN’S EYES
Amazing world seen by children’s eyes and captured in their pictures and photos became the subject of exhibition opened in Creative Youth Palace. Those children’s works tell about their perception of the surrounding world, how they think and find their resolutions of even the most complicated problems.
Children learn to express their thoughts and feelings by means of drawing since the very childhood. They look at the world in a special way; they understand it in their way, think over it, and visual art helps them to express and show their talents, to tell about the most vital things. The exhibition of children’s photos and pictures was organized by UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and Forum of Culture and Arts of Uzbekistan Foundation. Education, disability, right to live with family, society, culture and environment became the key subjects, chosen by children themselves.
“This exhibition is conducted within the Year of Youth State Program implemented in our country and is timed to the celebration of the 60th anniversary of adoption the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” Tanzilya Norbaeva, the responsible executive of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan noted in the opening ceremony of the exhibition. “We are very pleased that the work of Forum Fond within the last years, directed to education of creative abilities at talented children, was so eagerly supported by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF). We enjoyed very much looking at children’s photos and pictures and revealing their thoughts and dreams. The State takes all efforts to give them all the best, care and attention, high-quality education, creates conditions for them to show their abilities and talents. Such exhibitions and contests promote this much. So this year – the Year of Youth and further this work will be continued and expanded aiming at education of new talents among children especially in far regions.”
Within this project, UNICEF office in Uzbekistan provided children of Mehribonlik Homes in the capital and children from Samarkand with instructions on photo art practicing. With the assistance of the Ministry of Public Education young photographers visited children’s homes, secondary and special schools, families and mahallas, and held series of photo sessions there. During the seminar they learned not only about how to take photos but to tell about their attitude to the surrounding world by means of their works.
“Every child should have an opportunity to express his own opinion regardless of his abilities or social status,” Mahbub Sharif, Head of UNICEF office in Uzbekistan said in the opening ceremony. “Looking at these beautiful works I was struck by their deep and clear view to the most serious social issues.”
Works of winners of the republican picture competition called “Children’s Rights in Children’s Eyes” were presented in the exhibition as well. The competition was also devoted to the 60th anniversary of adoption the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. UNICEF together with the Ministry of Public Education organized that competition in more than 9000 schools of the country.
“Participation in this seminar and the exhibition became a big event for us, we learned much, and, what is more important, we learned to see world with its beauty, wonderful human features, mercy and kindness and to reflect all this in our works,” a participant of the exhibition Javohir Adhamov noted.