Uzbekistan borrows 100 million dollars from the Asian Development Bank

The ADB has officially granted approval for this loan, which aims to support small and medium-sized businesses in Uzbekistan, as stated on the bank's website.

The ADB's program is designed to address the challenges faced by Uzbekistan in developing small and medium-sized enterprises within a financial sector predominantly characterized by high-interest rates and stringent collateral requirements imposed by banks. Yevgeny Zhukov, the General Director of ADB for Central and Western Asia, emphasized that this initiative represents the next crucial step in fostering the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises in Uzbekistan.

Zhukov further explained, "As Uzbekistan implements reforms to transition to a market economy based on a sound overall macroeconomic approach, small and medium-sized enterprises play an important role in ensuring diversified economic growth, productivity, and value-added formal employment."

The program is expected to enhance trade competitiveness for small and medium-sized enterprises by diversifying export products and markets. Additionally, it aims to improve efficiency through digitization and contribute to the employment of marketable skills, particularly for women and youth.

Priyanka Soud, the Chief Specialist for Private Sector Development at ADB, highlighted the positive outcomes of the program, stating, "Measures implemented within the framework of the program stimulate the growth and multiplication of small and medium-sized enterprises. In turn, this means the expansion of the tax base and the effective use of domestic resources."

For context, Uzbekistan joined ADB in 1995, and since then, the bank has provided loans, grants, and technical assistance totaling 10.8 billion US dollars to the country.