Uzbekistan will occupy the 5th place in terms of labor force growth in Europe and Central Asia by 2030 - WB report

Uzbekistan is a country with a rapidly growing labor force, which can be used to further promote the economic development of the country.

This statement was made by experts from the World Bank Group and the International Finance Corporation in their new report, “Creating Markets in Uzbekistan. From stability to competitiveness. "

The report notes that in 2016 the working-age population of the country reached 23 million, but only 13 million of them had a job.

According to the report, the working-age population in Uzbekistan may increase by 4 million by 2030.

“This will turn Uzbekistan into the fifth country in Europe and Central Asia (after Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and Poland) in terms of labor force growth,” the report says.

Experts also note that the majority of the working-age population in Uzbekistan is unemployed or forced to go abroad to earn money.

“This situation affects the young population of the country more. One out of 10 people between the ages of 20 and 24 is not looking for work, because they believe that they will not be able to find one,” the statement reads.

Experts from the World Bank Group and the International Finance Corporation also note that the main jobs in Uzbekistan fall to agriculture.

“Four out of every five able-bodied people are engaged in agriculture and small-scale services, which is proportional to the share in the GDP of these sectors. If we divide employment depending on the form of ownership, we will see that one third of the workers are employed in state enterprises, and another two are self-employed. ”

It is noted that this situation becomes the reason for the fact that the middle class in the form of a medium-sized business is not shaping in the country.

According to the authors of the report, large state enterprises and small enterprises dominate in Uzbekistan, which are still ineffective.

“At the same time, regulatory documents often become obstacles to the growth of companies and increase in employment,” the report states.