Uzbekistan sets $20bn project target for Kashkadarya development
Uzbekistan has set a three-year target of $20 billion in projects and 50,000 jobs for Kashkadarya, as President Shavkat Mirziyoyev outlined a broad development agenda for the southern region. The figures are goals for a programme officials have been told to prepare; they are not a report that the investment has already been secured or the jobs created.
The priorities were discussed at a meeting on Kashkadarya’s socio-economic development on 22 October. The agenda ranges from industrial production and electricity links to drinking-water networks, farming, roads, tourism, vocational training and a proposed new city. Many measures remain plans, instructions or works scheduled for a later date.
Industrial growth and energy supply
The proposed project programme is intended to make greater use of the region’s natural gas, electricity and mineral resources to produce higher-value goods. The meeting considered possible work at the gas-to-liquids plant, polymer and petrochemical production using naphtha, increased output at the Dehkanabad potash plant and smaller chemical manufacturing projects.
Six industrial clusters and branches of the Kashkadarya Free Economic Zone are planned to connect large enterprises with local manufacturers. The region also aims to increase local production of agricultural machinery and begin making agricultural drones. An initial allocation of 250 billion soums was identified for cluster infrastructure.
Electricity infrastructure is another stated priority. A 300-megawatt solar power plant with energy storage is expected to become operational next year, while a waste-to-energy project in Karshi district was described as nearing completion. The programme also calls for substations in Nishon and Kokdala and completion of a 245-kilometre transmission line between Tolimarjon and Sogdiyona.
Water, farming and road links
Plans for agriculture include using drones to sow drought-resistant fodder crops over 100,000 hectares of pasture in eight districts, with livestock complexes also envisaged. In Guzar, 10,000 hectares are to be brought into productive use, while satellite data has identified a further 30,000 hectares for possible development with Egyptian specialists. The stated potential for agriculture to create income opportunities for 200,000 people is a regional estimate, not a count of new jobs already delivered.
Water projects address both irrigation and household supply. Officials plan to line 265 kilometres of canals and upgrade 20 pumps next year, while water-saving technologies are to be introduced across 75,000 hectares. Separately, work already funded is expected to complete 747 kilometres of water and sewerage networks and 43 facilities, with an anticipated benefit for 200,000 people. Proposed supply links from the Hisorak Reservoir and reconstruction of the Tolimarjon–Muborak system are intended to serve additional communities; those projected reach figures describe planned beneficiaries.
Road proposals include reconstruction of a 100-kilometre stretch of the A-380 highway through the region with the Asian Development Bank. A connection to the Karshi ring road and two overpasses at railway crossings are also planned to improve movement where passing trains can hold up traffic.
Tourism, skills and a proposed new city
Tourism plans include a first phase of a ski resort at Gelon, more village-based cultural tourism, and rafting and sports tourism in Shahrisabz district. Master plans are to be prepared for six villages, with $50 million in projects envisaged. The region reported 2.5 million visitors since the start of the year, including 500,000 to Gelon; the meeting set out ambitions to build on that existing visitor activity.
Training was also part of the agenda. In Karshi, instructors who received professional training in Germany are passing on skills to teachers from 57 vocational colleges across the region. Officials were asked to strengthen career guidance between schools and colleges so that young people can prepare for the kinds of work the development programme is intended to support.
A major longer-term proposal is Yangi Karshi, a new city planned at the meeting point of Karshi city, Kokdala and Karshi district. It is designed for 500,000 residents, but the population figure describes the proposed city’s capacity, not people already living there. A master plan is to be developed with architectural firms, and the planned urban areas are intended to follow green- and smart-city principles. An eco-complex in Karshi district is also planned.
The package therefore combines immediate infrastructure instructions with investment ambitions and long-range proposals. Its headline financial and employment targets will depend on projects progressing from plans through preparation and financing to implementation.
