More than 21,000 projects submitted for first season of “Open Budget”

On February 21, the project submission phase for the first season of Uzbekistan’s 2026 “Initiative Budget” cycle has officially ended, the Ministry of Finance and Economy reported.

The submission process began on February 1 and continued through February 20. During this period, citizens submitted a total of 21,049 project proposals.

The next stage of the process—screening of submitted projects—will now begin. This phase will run from February 21 through March 7. During screening, the proposals will be reviewed for compliance with established criteria and requirements, as well as their feasibility for implementation.

Projects that successfully pass the screening stage will move on to the next phase—public voting. The initiatives receiving the most support will be funded and implemented.

The “Initiative Budget” program is designed to increase public participation, address local issues directly with citizen involvement, and ensure openness and transparency in the use of budget funds.

For reference, since March 2024, a “one citizen, one vote” system has been introduced to promote fair competition during the voting process. In cooperation with the Digital Government Projects Management Center, a mechanism is being implemented to identify voters and ensure that only one vote per citizen is accepted.