Payment for water supply services declined by 10 times in Uzbekistan 

In Uzbekistan, the average daily income from the provision of drinking and wastewater services was 3.1 billion soums before the quarantine was announced, today this figure has decreased by 10 times and amounted to 0.3 billion soums, the Ministry of Finance reported.

Introduced quarantine led to a temporary cessation of activities of most enterprises, organizations and budgetary institutions. It, in turn, led to a decrease in the water consumption of legal organizations and an increase in the population’s need for drinking water.

The Ministry of Finance notes that such cases have a negative impact on the sustainable activities of water supply enterprises in the quarantine period, including the remuneration of employees, the purchase of chemicals needed for water treatment and loan repayments.

In order to prevent the deterioration of the financial condition of water supply enterprises under quarantine conditions, to mitigate the consequences of the pandemic, at the initiative of the Ministry of Finance, together with the Ministry of Housing and Public Utilities, the amount of funds necessary for payment to water supply enterprises was studied. Corresponding proposals were made to the Cabinet of Ministers on state financial support for water supply during the quarantine.

In accordance with the proposals of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Housing and Public Utilities on financial support for water supply enterprises, on the basis of a special order of the Prime Minister, a total of 61.4 billion soums were allocated from the Anti-Crisis Fund in the form of an interest-free loan to cover the costs (chemical reagents, fuels and lubricants), wages and equivalent payments of water supply enterprises.