On January 28, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan – Minister of Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Jamshid Kuchkarov chaired an online meeting of the heads of ministries and agencies of the member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, dedicated to poverty reduction.

The meeting was attended by SCO Secretary-General Zhang Ming and heads of relevant ministries and agencies of India, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Russia.

SCO Secretary-General Zhang Ming noted the importance of exchanging experience and information on the directions and applied mechanisms for reducing poverty in specific sectors.

The Chairman of the meeting, Jamshid Kuchkarov, informed the participants of the meeting about the activities carried out in the country in recent years in poverty reduction, emphasizing that they are being carried out within the framework of the initiatives of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, put forward at the SCO and UN summits. At the same time, the focus is on strengthening the healthcare system, social protection, and supporting enterprises in the real sector of the economy.

Measures taken to create and strengthen the institutional framework for the implementation of a new program to reduce poverty were considered.

It was emphasized that the establishment of effective cooperation, interaction with several countries and international organizations plays an important role in the process of taking the necessary measures and decisions to reduce the consequences of the pandemic.

The participants of the event discussed the measures taken, goals and new approaches to poverty reduction in the SCO member states, the exchange of experience in this area, the organization of joint research, including on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, and prospects for further development of cooperation.

The Uzbek side put forward proposals on establishing continuous cooperation between the SCO countries in poverty reduction, developing and adopting a document on poverty reduction within the organization, which coincides with the interests of all SCO countries.

The parties approved and accepted for further elaboration the information of the Uzbek side on the organization in May this year, within the framework of the SCO, of an international conference on poverty reduction, with the invitation of representatives of member states, observers and dialogue partners. It is also planned to involve experts from international financial institutions and organizations.

Following the meeting, the parties agreed to consider the possibility of developing, taking into account the proposals of the draft memorandum of understanding on poverty reduction for the economic and social development of the SCO member states.

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Saidmurod Rakhimov, UzA