President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed the proposals during a presentation on improving educational opportunities and social support for children with disabilities.
Officials said Uzbekistan is currently home to more than 168,000 children with disabilities. Of those, 133,800 already receive educational or social services, while another 34,600 still need to be integrated into the education system.
To improve access, the government plans to introduce a family-centered support system involving social workers. Under the new approach, each child's needs will be assessed comprehensively at an early stage, after which the most suitable educational environment and support services will be identified.
The new assessment mechanism will be piloted from October 1 in Khorezm and Navoi regions.
Beginning with the 2026/2027 academic year, special schools will introduce individualized learning plans tailored to each child's needs, functional abilities and academic progress. Blind teachers, as well as primary school classes at special schools, will also be provided with personal assistants and support staff.
Private educational institutions that establish correctional classes close to children's homes will become eligible for state subsidies calculated on a per-student basis. In addition, grant funding will be allocated each year to support inclusive education initiatives at no fewer than 50 schools.
Further measures are planned from 2027, when children with disabilities could begin receiving assistive technologies through a voucher system. The proposed package includes text-reading devices, speech synthesizers, Braille displays and other assistive equipment.
Starting with the 2027/2028 academic year, applicants with disabilities will also receive additional accommodations during university entrance and certification examinations. These will include extra time, Braille materials, sign language interpretation, personal assistants and other forms of support designed to ensure equal access to education.
