导语：President Shavkat Mirziyoyev's New Year message focused on the work of 2023 and the most important tasks for this year.In order to raise the honour and dignity of a person, ensure the interests of the population and strengthen the economy, 2024 has been declared the Year of Support for Youth and
President Shavkat Mirziyoyev's New Year message focused on the work of 2023 and the most important tasks for this year.
In order to raise the honour and dignity of a person, ensure the interests of the population and strengthen the economy, 2024 has been declared the Year of Support for Youth and Business.
The reforms of recent years have affected all young people. The rights and interests of this category of citizens have also been strengthened in the new version of the Constitution.
According to Article 79 of the Basic Law, the State shall ensure the protection of the personal, political, economic, social, cultural and environmental rights of young people and encourage their active participation in the life of society and the State; it shall create conditions for the intellectual, creative, physical and moral education and development of young people, the exercise of their rights to education, health care, housing, recruitment, employment and recreation.
The Presidential Decree "On the Strategy "Uzbekistan-2030" is also a document that serves as a solid legal basis for increasing the potential of the new change and its comprehensive development. It provides for the creation of a system of training young people in modern professions and foreign languages. The aim is to set up a "creative park" in each region, attracting at least 40,000 young people a year, and to ensure that school graduates know at least two foreign languages and one profession.
The skills of at least two million young people will be developed through participation in scientific and innovative activities, intellectual games and foreign language learning. Every year, 500 talented young men and women will be sent to study at prestigious foreign universities.
The strategy also includes measures to employ 400,000 young people, address their problems and reduce the unemployment rate among this segment of the labour market from 14 to 11 percent. Special emphasis will be placed on further popularizing the IT sector and increasing exports of IT services.
In this context, it is planned to employ 300,000 young people in the field of information technology. Practical measures have been identified to train schoolchildren in modern professions that are in demand in the international IT market, to expand the "One Million Uzbek Coders" project, and to create a system of annual training for 15,000 of the most talented on the basis of programmes that meet the standards of prestigious international companies.
In the future, the main goals of the strategy are to increase the number of young people from 8 million by organizing mass sports events and creating sports grounds in at least 5,000 makhallas.
Young people are reaching new heights in many areas thanks to the conditions created for the acquisition of knowledge, the development of modern professions and the manifestation of talents, including in business. The number of higher education institutions has almost tripled and the coverage rate has increased from 9 to 42 percent. It is expected to exceed 50 percent by 2030.
Promoting youth entrepreneurship and employment has been identified as a priority. Every year 600,000 young people enter the labour market and this number will reach one million in the next decade. Over the past three years, 250,000 young people have received more than 6 trillion Uzbek soums in preferential loans, and 210 industrial and business zones have been created. 2.5 thousand projects worth 4 trillion Uzbek soums have been implemented to develop youth entrepreneurship. As a result, the number of entrepreneurs has doubled to over 200,000. The most mobile category of citizens has been allocated 43,000 hectares of land, 435,000 young people have been provided with employment, and more than 32,000 young people have been provided with equipment, tools and computers through subsidies. Employment-related issues are being addressed. Vocational training and support programmes have been approved and are being implemented. Existing vocational training centres provide training in over 50 occupations.
Consistent efforts were made during the reporting period to provide young people with social protection and economic and legal support. The position of youth leader was established at citizens' assemblies. The "youth notebook" system has been introduced, as a result of which, over the past two years, about 798 thousand individuals who need support have been provided with assistance in the amount of about one trillion Uzbek soums.
Last year, 130,000 students received 1 trillion 700 billion Uzbek soums of educational loans, and women's master's studies became free. 53,000 students from low-income families were paid tuition fees, more than 15,000 students were paid for military service, 13,000 for foreign language exams and 81,000 for rent. Thanks to the "Youth Notebook", 300 thousand compatriots have been helped with almost 600 billion Uzbek soums.
Special attention is paid to 9 million citizens between the ages of 14 and 30. For the first time, information from 25 ministries and agencies has been brought together in a single electronic database. The social situation, abilities and interests of young people have been studied, and measures for working in the system "from the makhalla to the ministry" have been defined.
A comprehensive youth policy is being implemented in accordance with internationally recognized rights and standards, which would serve to achieve the goals set.
Mukhammadjon Valiev,
Chairman, Commission on Youth Affairs,
Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis