The President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev participated in the meeting of the National Council for Combating Corruption on March 5, 2025. The meeting reviewed the progress made in creating a corruption-free environment and outlined the next steps.

   In his speech, the head of state emphasized that corruption is the most serious obstacle to reforms. In this regard, over the past few years, laws have been adopted and a new system to fight this vice has been established. Responsible committees have been formed in the chambers of parliament, and the National Council and the Anti-Corruption Agency have been created.

  Special attention was given to forming conditions where the public can openly raise and discuss the issue of corruption. The role and influence of mass media in this field are also growing.

  Primarily, measures are being taken to address the root causes of corruption. For example, the refusal to allocate land plots based on the decisions of khokims and the transition to an auction system have made the process of distribution more transparent. After the introduction of the "Transparent Struggle" program, positive changes are also observed in this area.

  The adoption of the law on public procurement, the digitization of election and tender systems, and the establishment of healthy competition allowed for a saving of 14 trillion sums of budgetary funds in the past year.

   Today, all banks provide household loans of up to 100 million sums online within 5 minutes without human involvement. As a result, thousands of bankers, who previously processed such applications, now work directly in the neighborhoods, offering projects and loan programs, which helps increase the client base.

  In the system of preschool and school education, more than 10 types of services have been fully transferred to electronic format, reducing the number of requests by 2.5 times.

  The higher education system has also been digitized: a system for taking tests and selecting universities based on results has been introduced, and the automated issuance of 35 types of documents has reduced the number of requests by 2.2 times.

  Thanks to the use of body cameras by traffic safety inspectors, the sale of car numbers through auctions, and the abandonment of paper protocols, corruption factors have been significantly reduced.

   Public and business services are now organized based on the principle of "a government that serves the people": the requirements to submit 120 types of documents and over 160 licenses and permits have been canceled. This led to nearly 200,000 new entrepreneurs entering the market, and the number of enterprises with foreign participation increased almost fivefold, reaching 23,000.

   The number of electronic government services has increased 15 times, reaching 721, with over 11 million users.

 Most importantly, these measures have strengthened the faith of the public, entrepreneurs, foreign partners, international organizations, and investors in the ongoing reforms. Over the past seven years, more than $120 billion in investments have been attracted, and the country's economy has doubled, reaching $115 billion last year.

  The President stressed that the fight against corruption is a continuous process and outlined current issues and future tasks in this area. It was noted that law enforcement agencies are primarily focused on detecting and punishing corrupt acts, while preventive measures aimed at eliminating corruption factors are being ignored.

  Therefore, a decision was made to change the methodology of the Anti-Corruption Agency's work. As an experiment, compliance control in five ministries-Health, Construction, Water Resources, the joint-stock companies "Uzbekneftegaz" and "Uzsuvtaminot"-will be transferred to the agency.

  Additionally, a thorough study of household and systemic corruption factors will be conducted at the district level, and based on this, specific measures will be developed and presented to the National Council.

  It was noted that 75% of corrupt crimes are committed in the form of petty corruption in districts and neighborhoods, so the composition of regional anti-corruption councils will be completely updated. The heads of regional councils of people's deputies will lead them.

  Regional councils will propose changes to legislation aimed at eliminating corruption factors and ensuring the inevitability of punishment. Eight years ago, a system of sectors for the comprehensive development of territories was introduced. These sectors contributed to solving socio-economic problems. In recent years, the potential of regions has significantly increased.

 Therefore, it was decided that prosecutors, heads of internal affairs and tax agencies will no longer be involved in the activities of these sectors. Additional tasks have been set for crime prevention and its fight.

  Special attention was given to preventing corruption in the field of public procurement. To this end, an Expert Commission will be created. Based on best practices, an electronic platform will be developed to ensure that the prices for goods and services purchased through public procurement do not exceed the average market prices by more than 20%. Penalties and fines will be introduced for violations of this requirement.

  Requirements for the procurement of capital goods from the budget and off-budget funds will also be tightened. When procuring by state institutions, preference will be given to domestic transportation and furniture, and large projects will include assessments considering high anti-corruption standards.

  The fight against corruption begins with the selection of professional and dedicated employees for public service. Therefore, instructions have been given to improve recruitment and candidate evaluation procedures. The need for a law on the declaration of income by public officials has been noted, and a draft of this law will be put out for public discussion.

  The importance of instilling the values of honesty in educational institutions to raise a new generation intolerant of corruption, as well as supporting the initiatives of young people, was emphasized.

  Addressing the public, the President stated that the fight against corruption is a nationwide task and a matter of conscience for every patriot of the country.

– If we all unite our efforts, we will certainly achieve significant positive results. That is why the activists of neighborhoods, the older generation, intellectuals, writers and poets, workers in the arts and culture, entrepreneurs, famous figures, leaders, deputies, and senators—all of society—must come together as a whole and treat corruption as a "blemish on the body of society."

   During the meeting, there was a dialogue with members of parliament, government representatives, and the public. The event, conducted for the first time in such a format, demonstrated strong political will to fight corruption. The head of state presented 55 specific initiatives, within which 5 laws, 12 decrees, and resolutions will be developed, and the role of parliament, the National and regional councils, and civil society institutions in the fight against corruption will be strengthened.

    The legal framework for the fight against corruption will be strengthened: the introduction of a new income declaration system and measures to prevent illegal enrichment will reduce corruption factors. The activities of the Anti-Corruption Agency and internal control structures in organizations will be intensified.

   The responsibility of the heads of ministries and agencies to prevent petty corruption will be increased. A system for assessing the quality of government services by the public will be created, and strict measures will be taken against leaders with the worst performance.

   The independence of inspection bodies will be strengthened, and mechanisms to prevent corruption will be introduced in large investment projects and auctions.

   Thanks to the reorganization of the public procurement system and restrictions on direct purchases, budget savings will be ensured, and misuse of public funds will be stopped. Freed resources will be mobilized to fight crime, which will lead to strengthened societal stability and increased public trust. Enhanced prosecutor supervision over illegal checks will contribute to improving the business and investment climate in the regions. The achieved results will improve the country's position in international rankings, and by 2027, conditions will be created for Uzbekistan's nomination to host the UNCAC conference. Most importantly, public legal awareness, especially among the youth, will increase, and society will develop a sense of participation in the fight against corruption.

Official website of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan