The 1st Uzbekistan-Azerbaijan Interregional Forum was held in Tashkent with the support of the Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade of Uzbekistan and the Ministry of Economy of Azerbaijan, with the organization of the Export and Investment Promotion Agency - AZPROMO. The event was attended by officials from both sides, as well as businessmen operating in different fields.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan Bakhtiyor Sayidov emphasized at the opening ceremony of the forum that the attention paid by the heads of state to the development of relations is a strong stimulus for the expansion of our partnership in political, economic-trade, humanitarian and other fields. As a result of this, joint projects are being successfully implemented in such fields as energy, automobile manufacturing, transport, agriculture, and petrochemicals. Today's Forum will also be of great importance in determining new directions of our cooperation.
The Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade of Uzbekistan, Laziz Kudratov, stressed that economic and trade cooperation between his country and Azerbaijan is developing upward. It was noted that business relations and the establishment of relations between the regions of Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan will further strengthen our mutually beneficial partnership.
The Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov drew attention to the high-level Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan relations, the importance of mutual official visits of the heads of state, negotiations, meetings and events.
It was reported that an increase of more than 63 percent was observed last year in the field of trade, which is one of the main areas of economic cooperation. It was emphasized that there is a wide potential for effective partnership between our countries in investment, automobile, agricultural and household appliances production, metallurgy, organization of joint production in Azerbaijan's industrial zones and other areas. The Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan Investment Fund to be created will play an important role in our economic cooperation, in the implementation of new investment projects, and in the creation of jobs.
The minister informed about the economy of Azerbaijan and noted that the GDP has increased by 4.6%, including the non-oil GDP by more than 9% in 2022.
The forum also informed about the favorable business environment of our country, the potential of our territories liberated from occupation, and invited business circles for active cooperation. It was pointed out that the construction of a 960-student school is underway in Fuzuli district on the initiative of the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, and this is another clear manifestation of the close ties between our peoples.
It was noted that there are ample opportunities for developing relations between the regions of our countries. The 1st Uzbekistan-Azerbaijan Interregional Forum is an important platform for joint initiatives.
Zakir Ibrahimov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of "AzerGold" CJSC, informed at the forum about the activity of the institution headed by him, the mining and exploration works carried out in our liberated territories, the planned projects in this field, and shared his views on the prospects of cooperation with the relevant institutions of Uzbekistan.
Presentations about investment projects, as well as meetings in "B2B" and "B2G" formats were held at the event.
The parties signed a number of documents within the framework of the forum. Thus, an Intergovernmental Agreement on the establishment of the Uzbekistan-Azerbaijan Investment Fund, documents on twinning between the cities of Khiva and Shusha, Samarkand and Ganja, Bukhara and Lankaran, Kokand and Sheki, a roadmap on the expansion of practical cooperation in economic-trade, scientific-technical and cultural-humanitarian fields between Tashkent City Executive Authority and Baku City Executive Authority for 2023-2025, a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation between the Export and Investment Promotion Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan - AZPROMO and the Agency for Regulation of Alcohol and Tobacco Market and Winemaking Development of the Republic of Uzbekistan, a Memorandum of Cooperation between the Small and Medium Business Development Agency under the Ministry of Economy and the Entrepreneurship Development Agency under the Ministry of Economic Development and Poverty Reduction of Uzbekistan, Memorandum of Understanding and Agreement on cooperation between "AzerGold" CJSC and the Ministry of Mining Industry and Geology of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Memorandum on cooperation and interaction between "Mega Invest Industrial" LLC and "NABUCCO A&C" company, an Agreement on cooperation between "Jahan Industrial Complex" LLC and "Azimut Plus" LLC was signed.
It should be noted that the 3rd meeting of the Uzbekistan-Azerbaijan Business Council was held within the framework of the Forum. Discussions were held at the event in the direction of the work done on the tasks defined during the previous meetings as well as in the direction of expanding relations between business subjects of the two countries.
