November 26, 2007
Politics:
China, Uzbekistan to further parliamentary exchanges
Economics:
Int. Uzbek Textile Fair To Take Place Dec.5-6’07 in Tashkent
394 Enterprises Privatized In Country For Over 9 Months 07
Power engineering needs more coal
Market services for 2.1 trillion soums provided in rural area
Society:
Contest Reveals 'Woman of the Year' In Country
Workshop discusses protection of women in migration process
POLITICS
CHINA, UZBEKISTAN TO FURTHER PARLIAMENTARY EXCHANGES
Chinese top legislator Wu Bangguo met in Beijing on 23 November with Adham Shadmanov, vice speaker of the Legislative Chamber of Supreme assembly of Uzbekistan, vowing to further exchanges between the legislative organs of the two countries, Xinhua reported.
Wu, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), said the NPC would like to enhance exchanges and consultations with the Uzbekistan parliament.
Wu said China and Uzbekistan had maintained healthy relations over the past 15 years, and the political trust deepened and cooperation on trade, energy resources and security had been fruitful. The two sides had conducted effective cooperation in the United Nations and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), he added.
He expressed gratitude for the support of Uzbekistan on the Taiwan and Tibet issue, as well as its cracking down on "East Turkistan" terrorist forces.
Wu pledged to encourage the Chinese entrepreneurs to invest in Uzbekistan and to expand the cooperation on telecommunication, agriculture and infrastructure.
Adham Shadmanov said Uzbekistan appreciated the role China had played in the international and regional organizations including the SCO, and hoped the parliaments of the two countries would contribute to all-round development of the bilateral ties.
ECONOMY
INT. UZBEK TEXTILE FAIR TO TAKE PLACE DEC.5-6’07 IN TASHKENT
On December 5-6, 2007 the International Uzbek Textile Fair will take place in Tashkent, Jahon Information Agency reported.
With an aim to further develop the deep processing of the cotton fiber and manufacturing of textile products with high value added cost, increase the volume of attracted foreign investments through presenting the available investment climate to a broader spectrum of foreign companies, getting the world trade companies acquainted with achievements in the sphere of textile and quality of goods, as well as raise the exports potential of the textile industry the International Uzbek Textile Fair is scheduled to be held on December 5-6, 2007 in the city of Tashkent.
The main objectives of the textile fair is to further expand the nomenclature and diversification of exports geography of the textile products, develop the long-term partnership relations with the leading world producers and trade companies of textile goods, as well as analyze the tendencies and prospects of development of the world market. The complex of organizational and preparation measures has been elaborated to get the participants of the fair acquainted with the latest achievements in the country’s textile industry and the established link of manufacturing of textile goods – ranging from the cotton yarn to finished goods.
The discussion of the current state and prospects of development of the textile world market, as well as the access and expansion of the Uzbek textile supplies to the perspective markets is scheduled to be held in the framework of event.
394 ENTERPRISES PRIVATIZED IN COUNTRY FOR OVER 9 MONTHS 07
During the implementation of the Programme on Decentralization and Privatization, according to data by the State Property Committee, 394 enterprises and projects were privatized in January-September 2007 in Uzbekistan, the report by Uzreport.com has said.
In the said period the greatest number of projects (out of the total number of projects privatized in the country) was privatized in the Tashkent Province (20.1%), the city of Tashkent (19%), Ferghana Province (8.9%), Samarkand Province (7.4%) and Namangan Province (6.3%).
In the structure of privatized state property the highest share falls upon projects of local authorities (35.3%), Ministry of Public Education (14.2%), Ministry of Health (7.6%), Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources (6.1%), Uzbekneftgaz national holding company (4.8%).
In January-September 2007 the actual earnings from privatization and decentralization amounted to UZS 71.6 billion. The most part of them has been observed in the city of Tashkent (55.1% of the total funds received from privatization and decentralization), Tashkent Province (25.5%), Khorezm Province (7.4%) and Samarkand Province (3.4%), according to the report.
POWER ENGINEERING NEEDS MORE COAL
Uzbekistan plans to increase by 2012 the share of coal in the power consumption. Next year the SSC “Uzbekenergo” will begin to implement a scaled project on transforming the thermoelectric power stations to all-the-year-round coal firing and reconstructing the main open coal mine, “Angren” worth US$ over 300 million.
Chief Executive Batir Teshabaev of the “Uzbekenergo” informs the UT that the Russian CSC Western-Ural Machine Building Concern will develop a preliminary technical and economic validity project on modernizing the “Angren” open coal mine in Tashkent region. He states that the Russian company has won a tender, announced in April this year, on developing the technical and economic validity project on re-equipping the “Angren” open coal mine with reaching the coal production capacity of 7.5 million tons a year by 2012. The Western-Ural Machine Building Concern is to develop the preliminary technical and economic validity project by next February. It is intended to announce during the first six months of 2008 a tender on choosing the general contractor for reconstructing the “Angren”.
In April this year the Uzbek State Institute of Projection in Power Engineering, Oil and Gas Processing, Chemical and Heavy Industries announced a tender on developing a preliminary technical and economic validity projects on modernizing the New Angren Thermoelectric Power Station and “Angren” open coal mine.
The OSC “Teploelectroproject” (a section of the SSC “Uzbekenergo”) has won a tender on developing the preliminary technical and economic validity project on transforming the New Angren Thermoelectric Power Station to all-the-year-round coal firing by constructing the power station’s eighth power generating unit.
The projects will be financed by credits worth US$ 60 million of the Fund for Reconstruction and Development of Uzbekistan, own funds worth US$ 164 million of the SSC “Uzbekenergo” and credits of US$ 81 million of foreign banks.
Today Uzbekistan has reached the coal production level of more than 3 million tons a year. If the modernization program of coal industry is completely implemented, by 2012 Uzbekistan will produce 8.3 million tons of coal per year. Its main part, 6 million tons will go to coal supply of thermoelectric power stations of the “Uzbekenergo”.
The share of coal in the Uzbek fuel balance was 5.7% in 2006. At the same time, it is the main fuel in thermoelectric power engineering of rich-in-coal countries; the World Energy Council states that more than half of generated electric power falls to the share of coal power stations in the United States and Germany. Moreover, coal experts believe that the share of coal in Uzbekistan’s power balance can be made 15-20% in near five years. At present the OSC “Uzbekko’mir” whose share in the country’s coal production is 98% is conducting the industrial development of the largest Angren brown coal field in Tashkent region having explored coal reserves of 1.9 billion tons. The OSC “Sharg’unko’mir” has a license for developing the Boisun and Shargun coal fields having total prospected reserves of 45.8 million tons in Surkhandarya region in the south of Uzbekistan.
MARKET SERVICES FOR 2.1 TRILLION SOUMS PROVIDED IN RURAL AREA
The volume of market services by all kinds of activity in Uzbekistran was 9.18 trillion soums in January-September 2007, including 2.13 trillion soums of the rural area, or 23.2% of the total volume of rendered services.
As compared to the corresponding period of the previous year the real increase of services was 26.4%, according to the State Statistics Committee of Uzbekistan.
The highest growth rates were achieved in the following services: communication and information, including services of information and resource centers (151.8%), repair of cars and other equipment (136.7%), hotels (129.7%), trade and catering (127.2%) and personal (127%).
The following services prevailed in the structure of services: transport (36.4% of total services), trade and catering (18.4%), communal (15.8%), communication and information, including services of information and resource centers (6%) and financial, including microcredit granting (5.3%).
SOCIETY
CONTEST REVEALS 'WOMAN OF THE YEAR' IN COUNTRY
Today, this year’s finalist of the National annual contest “Woman of the Year”, announced by the public association “Women’s Assembly”, has come out. The bright performance with the participation of 14 finalists from all around Uzbekistan took place at the Tashkent Center of National Arts.
As of late, the role of women in society has increased in a notable fashion. Thus, they now have more opportunities for personal and career growth. Uzbek women have been actively participating in the life of the country realizing their abilities and talents in most different spheres. Among women there are a lot of business-ladies, politicians, scientific, and heads of enterprises, according to the report by "Uzbekistan Today" News Agency.
At the same time women harmoniously combine professional work with care of their relatives and people close to them, as has been evidenced once again by the contest “Woman of the Year”. It has brought together the most successful women of the Republic, those who are successful not only in their profession, but, first of all, in the family. After all, what is an ideal Eastern woman like? A loving wife, a caring mother, a professional that relatives take pride in, an interesting and versatile person who can teach a lot to children.
About five thousand women of various ages and specialties decided to try their strengths in the new project of the PA “Women’s Assembly”. Regional rounds of the competition have passed with a greater scope. Festive performances during which participants showed their talents have helped viewers to look at them in a new fashion and evoked a deep sense of pride with compatriots. Nominees were gauged by the special jury consisting of prominent representatives of the public of the given region, as well as workers of culture and art from Tashkent. A gift for inhabitants of each city where regional stages of the “Woman of the Year” were held were performances by pop singers.
On November 23 the “Woman of the Year” and a number of winners in incentive nominations received prizes and diplomas of the competition. An award ceremony for finalists, too, has been organized in the form of a colorful show, the report said.
Hence, the first place has been secured by the carpet-weaver from Samarkand, the manager of the joint venture "Samarkand-Buhoro Ipak Gilami", the master's student at the Samarkand State Institute of Foreign Languages and the mother of two Dildora Niyazova, another report by the Uzbekistan National News Agency Russian-language website has said.
WORKSHOP DISCUSSES PROTECTION OF WOMEN IN MIGRATION PROCESS
The Women's Committee of Uzbekistan and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) organized a workshop to consider issues on improvement of social protection of women participating in migration process on November 23.
UNDP supported the workshop on "Improving social protection of women involved in labour migration" through project "Promotion of the rights of women migrant workers". The project is aimed at improving the protection of human rights of the women involved in labour migration in Uzbekistan and to increase the quality of services provided by relevant government and nongovernmental bodies to women migrant workers and the victims of human trafficking.
Over 40 people, representing state agencies, non-governmental organizations, civic society and international organizations, participated in the workshop. The workshop participants considered such issues as migration tendencies in the post-Soviet space and Uzbekistan, monitoring and regulation of the labour migration processes and others.
Representatives of "Promotion of the rights of women migrant workers" presented the results and the outputs of the project and the results of the research on women, participating in migration process.
Sherzod Shermatov, the Head of Good Governance Unit of UNDP Uzbekistan, said: "The project carried out complex social research, seminars, prepared a series of radio progerammes and conducted other events. The aim of the current seminar is not only to sum up the results of the project, but to discuss the results and preliminary recommendations, received during social research and seminars in the regions, to improve social protection of women migrants."
The collapse of the Soviet Union and its centralized employment system and development of market economy in the new independent states of Central Asia caused significant changes in the labour markets. Shrinking job opportunities in rural areas led to internal and external labour migration. Labour migration in the region gradually came to include all strata of the population, including all ages, sexes, professions, and social groups.
Labour migration within and outside the countries among women results in many positive, as well as negative consequences. Rural women remain the main vulnerable group of labour migrants, due to their lower labour skills, existing gender stereotypes and the danger of sexual coercion. Many of them have suffered human and labour rights' abuses, especially in the cases of illegal migration and human trafficking.
In this regard, UNDP will assist the Government to meet its commitments on human rights, including the rights of women migrant workers, through support to the Women's Committee in the promotion of the rights of women migrant workers and the reintegration of migrant women/trafficked returnees into the society.