Recently, a construction entrepreneur claimed that corruption schemes exist in obtaining building permits, saying “nothing gets done without ‘greetings’” – referring to the practice of giving bribes or informal payments to secure approvals. The Ministry of Construction, however, denied the allegations, stating that the system operates transparently. So, what exactly did the entrepreneur mean by corruption, and why does the ministry reject these claims? Kun.uz explored these questions in a live broadcast with ministry officials and experts.
The discussion featured entrepreneur Usmon Abdusamatov, who spoke at an open dialogue at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, construction expert Abdulaziz Obidov, Aziz Khudoynazarov – head of Tashkent City Construction Department, and Eldorbek Siddiqov – project manager of the “Transparent Construction” national information system. Below is a summary of the interview.
Applications are rejected without justification – entrepreneur
Abdusamatov noted the difficulties of obtaining building permits and related documents. According to him, online applications submitted by developers are often rejected without clear reasons.
“For example, in our case, we bought land through an auction. In other cases, it is purchased from individuals. After forming the cadastral documents and submitting them online for the next stage, applications are sometimes rejected without explanation. These rejections force people to seek connections or fall into corrupt practices, because once land is purchased, costs such as land tax and property tax keep increasing if construction is delayed,” he said.
He added that in the cadastral registration stage, applications are frequently rejected at the last moment with standard phrases like “documents contain discrepancies” or “there are shortcomings,” even though only two documents – the cadastral file and the sale contract – are required at that stage.
Reviewing projects one by one is impossible – Construction Ministry
Responding to the claims, Aziz Khudoynazarov explained that the process involves approvals from fire safety, sanitary, environmental, and other agencies before projects are reviewed by the city commission.
He said Tashkent alone submits 60–70 project designs per week, making it unrealistic to review each one in detail. “If we were to convene commissions every day, we would not have time to work. That is why meetings are scheduled once a week, usually on Fridays,” he noted.
