On April 12, 2019, a bilateral meeting of the Finnish delegation headed by Mr. M. Keynenen, Deputy State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland and the leadership of the National Agency for Project Management (NAPM) under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan took place at the NAPM. The Finnish delegation also included the Ambassador of Finland Marja Liivala, the senior adviser to the Embassy of Finland Alexey Leppannen, the attache of the Embassy of Finland Irina Ambrosin, and also representatives of “Kaukointernational Ltd” and other companies.
According to the NAPM press service, during the meeting, the issues of further development of cooperation between Uzbekistan and Finland were discussed. It was noted that the countries have significant potential for deepening bilateral cooperation in many areas and they are interested in their mobilization. Representatives of the delegation noted the high rate of development of Uzbekistan and liberalization in various fields.
It is important to note that in accordance with the Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, since January of this year, the Agency has been entrusted with implementation of the “Ilgor hudud” project (“Advanced region”) in the territory of Jizzakh region.
The “Ilgor hudud” project envisages a comprehensive transformation and restructuring of the regional economy and industrial sphere, renewal and expansion of basic infrastructure, creation of favorable conditions that encourage investment in the Jizzakh region.
It should be noted that since June 2018, the NAPM, together with experts from the Finnish Water Forum, conducted a study of the city of Jizzakh and adjacent territories to identify key problems and develop solutions for waste management. As a result, together with the company “Kaukointernational Ltd”, a project was prepared to modernize the waste management system in the Jizzakh region. At the same time, 30% of the project cost is provided by the Finnish Government in the form of grant funds. In May of this year, political consultations are planned within which the project is expected to be approved. In June, preparation of the project documentation will be completed.
The project is planned to be implemented in 2020-2022, its implementation will allow developing a regional waste management plan, sorting and producing fuel from waste, piloting waste collection in a specific enterprise or group of enterprises.
Within the framework of the project implementation, teaching and practical training of personnel at all levels related to new facilities, including on-the-job training, as well as training in financial planning and management is envisaged.
In addition, a number of promising proposals for cooperation were voiced at the meeting. So, Mikko Lavanti, Vice-President of the company “Nokia Siemens Network” for Central-Eastern Europe and Central Asia, proposed cooperation in the field of telecommunications, IT security, smart cities and digital economy.
It was proposed to establish cooperation between “Business Finland” and the business incubator in the city of Jizzakh, including the conclusion of a memorandum.
Representatives of the Finnish delegation invited the Uzbek side to participate in the Slush Startup Event, which will be held on November 21-22 of this year in Helsinki. In turn, the Innovation Center to support development and implementation of information technologies “Mirzo Ulugbek Innovation Center” expressed its willingness to assist in ensuring the participation of its residents at the event.
