Press conference dedicated to the activities and progress of the "Rural Infrastructure Development" Project

A conference on the implementation and intermediate results of the Rural Infrastructure Development Project was held in Tashkent on 8 June 2022 organized by the Project Implementation Unit under the Ministry of Economic Development and Poverty Reduction of the Republic of Uzbekistan. The list of participants included representatives of international financial institutions, relevant ministries and departments, as well as local authorities and officials of non-governmental organizations, bloggers and the media. The Project, worth $183.6 million, is being implemented in 5 regions (Ferghana, Andijan, Namangan, Jizzakh and Syrdarya), covering 1.3 million people from 306 makhallas, and will provide direct participation of the population in the selection of subprojects in these regions. The Project is aimed at improving the living standards of the population through the construction of drinking water supply, electricity supply, road and transport infrastructure, social facilities, integrated development of areas and comprehensive renewal of their architectural appearance of rural areas. According to the Plan of the Project the following activities are expected to be implemented: • reconstruction of 622 social buildings (301 secondary schools, 240 preschool and 81 medical facilities); • reconstruction and/or construction of 1,642 km of clean drinking water networks. In addition, reconstruction and installing of 306 new water facilities; • reconstruction of 1,174 km of power supply networks, renewal of 1,116 transformers and 33,231 poles; • reconstruction of 100 km of internal roads, etc. At the end of the event, all participants and members of the media had the opportunity to ask questions concerning the Project. The conference highlighted the progress of the Project to a broader audience and became an effective platform to consolidate the results of the Project to date and served as a platform for regional expansion of the project through the implementation of new subprojects.