Uzbekistan-Bashkortostan: Expanding Economic Ties

Uzbekistan and Bashkortostan are strengthening economic ties.

A Tashkent-Ufa video conference was held at the Sputnik Uzbekistan multimedia press center, dedicated to the results of the business mission to Russia, the agreements reached, and new opportunities.

Participating in the discussion were Atabek Akhmatov, Head of the Export Assistance and Certification Department of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Uzbekistan; Shirin Suvankulova, Leading Specialist of the Small Business Association; and Albert Shaikhutdinov, Representative of the Republic of Bashkortostan to the Trade Mission of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Uzbekistan.

From August 2 to 7, a delegation from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Uzbekistan, together with the Small Business Association and the Agency for the Development of Light Industry, visited Tatarstan, Bashkortostan, Samara, and the Samara Region. During the visit, meetings were held with regional leadership, relevant ministries, chambers of commerce and industry, and business representatives.

Atabek Akhmatov reported: "The delegation included over 100 Uzbek businessmen. The first visit was to Kazan, where an exhibition of our products was held, showcasing the output of Uzbek entrepreneurs. As a result, preliminary agreements worth approximately $51 million were signed, which is a very good result. In Ufa, preliminary agreements worth over $70 million were also signed. There is a possibility of establishing a warehouse at the Eurasia fruit and vegetable market, owned by Bashglobalgroup LLC, which will allow our entrepreneurs to import, store, and sell agricultural products in Russia. A similar warehouse is planned for the Tolpar technology park. Two entrepreneurs from Samarkand expressed interest in opening their own production facilities at the Tolpar technology park. After Ufa, an exhibition was organized in Samara, events and business forums were held, and preliminary contracts worth approximately $45 million were signed."

The majority of contracts are for textiles, finished textiles, and clothing, as well as agricultural products, livestock farming, beekeeping, and poultry farming. Information was provided on Uzbekistan's economic zones, their advantages, and incentives for entrepreneurs willing to implement projects in these zones. Businesspeople and representatives of the business community from Tatarstan, Bashkortostan, Samara, and the Samara region were invited to pay a return visit to Uzbekistan.

Canned plov was mentioned among successful examples of cooperation.

Albert Shaikhutdinov noted: "Tashkent canned plov is simply superb. Many in Bashkortostan were surprised by the high quality and authenticity of this product. As Bashkortostan's representative in Tashkent, I can confirm that it truly tastes like it's just come out of a besh-kazan. This trend needs to be supported. Regarding the Bashkir leg of the business mission, I agree that we see great potential where trade can develop into industrial cooperation or localization. First and foremost, this is light industry: textiles, yarn, artificial leather, footwear, and workwear. Counter-flows already exist here. The second major area is the agro-industrial complex and the food industry. Uzbekistan can continue to increase its supplies of vegetables, fruits, dried fruits, and finished food products, while Bashkortostan can increase its supplies of vegetable oil, meat, dairy products, grain, and feed. The creation of a trading house and the development of distribution infrastructure and logistics will help make these supplies regular, rather than one-off events.

The heads of state set the goal of increasing trade turnover between the regions to $30 billion by 2030. Experts believe this ambitious goal is achievable. In addition to expanding traditional trade, industrial cooperation, localization of production, and joint projects already included in the roadmap will contribute to its achievement.

Three projects are in the implementation stage: the Bashkir side is building an industrial park in the Bekabad special economic zone in the Tashkent region; The Uzbek Premier Electrotech plant plans to open in the Alga special economic zone in Bashkortostan; a livestock farm operating in the Tashkent region is opening in the Iglinsky district of Bashkortostan. These projects, along with the opening of a trading house, are intended to facilitate the implementation of plans to increase trade turnover. Experts unanimously emphasize that the shared goal is to bring every meeting between business representatives from the two countries to practical implementation, turning negotiations into contracts, localization, and specific projects.