Abdulla Aripov: about development of digital infrastructure, economy and cybersecurity

Prime Minister of Uzbekistan Abdulla Aripov took part in the VIII Moscow International Forum "Open innovations". In his report at the plenary session "Intellectual economy. Three dilemmas for a digital nation", Abdulla Aripov spoke about the achievements and plans for the development of digital infrastructure, economy, skills and cybersecurity:

Uzbekistan is developing together with the rest of the world, keeping in step with the times. We are also developing digital technologies. We envy the success of our colleagues, we do everything to reduce this digital divide. I would like to focus on the key challenges of the digital agenda faced not only by the Republic of Uzbekistan, but also by other economically developing countries, as well as to outline ways to address them.

Development of digital infrastructure

I am sure that ensuring its wide availability is one of the main conditions for the sustainable development of the digital economy. At the same time, we see that in the world there is a gap and inequality between countries on the availability of digital infrastructure. According to the International Telecommunication Union, more than 40% of the world's population still does not have access to the Internet, while less than half of the world's inhabitants can afford to pay for broadband access to the network. We also face this challenge, especially in ensuring digital accessibility in rural areas, where half of the country's population lives. This problem affects many countries, the CIS countries, that is, ensuring equal conditions for rural residents. To overcome this digital challenge, the Republic is implementing a special presidential program for the development of digital infrastructure. In particular, by the end of next year, all social facilities of the country, including schools, pre-school and medical institutions, with more than 20 thousand facilities, will be provided broadband Internet access based on fiber-optic communication lines. And due to the development of the mobile network, it is planned to increase the number of subscribers to 23 million people.

This year Uzbekistan has successfully completed testing of the 5g mobile network, and we have set ourselves the task – to organize a commercial launch of the network in Tashkent next year.

Development of digital skills and competencies in the population

Many experts agree that digital technologies will significantly affect the labor market in the near future.

The McKinsey Global Institute estimates that up to 50% of the world's workflows will be automated by 2036. This will lead to a significant release of staff and increase the difference in pay levels. There are serious prerequisites for accelerated development of digital skills in Uzbekistan. In particular, more than 60% of the country's population belongs to young people, and the average age of the population in the country does not exceed 29 years, and this creates a serious basis for the formation of a digital intellectual society. In this regard, in the last three years, the country has paid great attention to improving the education system in the field of information technology. By the way, I want to note that I also belong to this profession.

At present, 17 higher education institutions in the Republic train specialized specialists, of which 7 are branches of leading foreign higher education institutions.