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Industry and agriculture.
Uzbekistan possesses a high-powered electro-system which is a part of the entire power system of Central Asia.
There are a number of large thermal heat power stations (HPS) such as the Syrdarya HPS, Tashkent HPS, Novo-Angren HPS, Navoi HPS as well as 19 hydropower stations (HDPS). The largest of
them is the Charvak HDPS. A program to build small HDPS's is presently being planned by some companies. Uzbekistan possesses a well-developed system for transporting gas consisting of 9
main gas arteries totaling 12 000 km, accessing the entire gas pipeline system of the 05. This enables a large proportion of gas to be supplied to Central Asia, the CIS and some European
countries. The transport system of the country practically meets all domestic demands. Uzbekistan has the highest density of railway and road networks in all of Central Asia. Uzbekistan
also boasts an adequate system of international airway communications. Situated between Europe and eastern Asia, the country serves as an important international transport center providing
transit air transportation, connecting east to west. The agricultural sector is a basic part of the national economy. It makes up over 20% of the GDP and supplies over 55% of in foreign
income. Over 60% of the population live in rural areas and 44% of the working population are involved in farming activities. Uzbekistan is one of the major producers of cotton fiber. The
country grows approximately 4 million tons of cotton per year and cotton fiber production totals 1.3 million tons per year. The country rates 4th in the world for cotton fiber production
and is the 2nd largest exporter of cotton fiber. Silk worm cocoons, leather and karakul industries are highly developed in Uzbekistan. Annually 30 000 tons of cocoons and over 18 000 tons
of wool are produced annually. Uzbekistan grows more than 2742 000 tons of wheat, over 449 000 tons of rice and 513 600 tons of potatoes (1998). The country ranks the best in the CIS for
their variety of fruit and vegetable production, grapes are especially notable. Livestock indicators for the country are as follows: cattle and poultry (natural weight) -854 300 tons, milk
- 3 390 300 tons, eggs - 1057 million pieces.
The Investment policy.
The Government of Uzbekistan actively works to provide a favorable investment climate. Two fundamental factors form
the basis of a good investment policy, political stability and macro-economic policy. The investment policy of the country focuses on strategic issues - The State Investment Program of
Uzbekistan, i.e. the amount of foreign investment in the country currently exceeds US $8 billion. The Program for Developing Existing Investment Projects supports industries such as power
and fuel mechanical engineering, mining, chemical. Light industry and agricultural processing. The total amount of investment for 1997 was approximately US $1,1 billion, 1,3 times more than
in 1996. Foreign investments and loans comprise about one fifth of total in vestments. The implementation of an investments and infrastructure policy is intended to modernize existing
enterprises and establish new enterprises. More than 30% has already been spent on advanced technologies and state-of-the-art equipment. The largest investors in this country are British
American Tobacco (tobacco production), Newmont Uzbekistan Ltd. (mining industry), Technip (oil and gas industry), Siemens and Alcatel (telecommunications). Experienced international
business leaders have assessed Uzbekistan and concluded that it provides a favorable investment climate for mutually beneficial cooperation. At the same time, there are more than 3 200
enterprises registered in Uzbekistan with foreign investments from more than 85 countries. Most enterprises were established in cooperation with partners from Russia, Turkey, the US, Great
Britain and Germany. Enterprises with foreign investments are working in all areas of the economy, but the mainly in the areas of mechanical engineering, the food industry, nonferrous
metallurgy, trade and the food and beverage industry.
Foreign Economic Relations.
The Republic of Uzbekistan aspires to establish an open economy based on the country's participation in world
economic relations and the international work force. Uzbekistan has entered into international economic relations with countries such as Germany, the US, Great Britain, Japan, France,
Italy, Korea, Turkey, and China. One of the foundations of the foreign economic policy is the development and implementation of highly integrated systems to improve and expand the country's
export potential. The program’s aim is to provide conditions for growth and improvement based on existing resources.
Together with Uzbekistan's State export expansion policy, an import
substitution policy has also been adopted. This policy promotes the utilization of the country's own resources for production. The country self sufficient in oil and hydrocarbons for 1998
and in the near future we hope to be self sufficient with regard to cereals. Production of meat, rice, sugar, potatoes, butter and medicines increases annually while the textile industry
and industrial processing continues to expand.
Uzbekistan's development of foreign trade relations could be defined as follows: Uzbekistan develops trade relations with many countries of the world, not
confining itself to cooperation with an individual region or group of countries; The domestic market maintains a demand for equipment and advanced technologies (investment goods); In
addition to the country's usual exports (cotton fiber, fuel. ferrous and nonferrous metals) food production, equipment and services are rapidly increasing. The country's foreign trade
turnover was US (8,9 billion In 1997, including exports totaling US $4,4 billion and imports totaling US $4,5 billion. Exports were established with 78 countries. The export structure has
changed significantly, in particular, export of raw materials decreased considerably while at the same time, the export of processed goods using mainly local raw materials, increased. The
import volume of products such as fuel, footwear, alcohol and soft drinks decreased, the amount of imported food products and consumer goods has halved. Approximately 74% of the total
volume of imported goods went to purchasing equipment and industrial-technical know-how for use in the country's development program of local industry.
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