Uzbekistan Quality Job Creation as a Cornerstone for Sustainable Economic Growth

Infrastructure as a Foundation for Job Creation
ChApTER 2
Infrastructure as a Foundation
for Job Creation
Kee-Yung Nam, Lotis Quiao, Denise Encarnacion,
and Bahtiyor Eshchanov
With its aspirations of doubling the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), 
the Government of Uzbekistan recognizes that the economy faces a number 
of challenges to maintaining its high economic growth over the longer term. 
They include the dilapidated and often inefficient infrastructure in sectors that 
can make or break the country’s growth objectives. Indeed, in its Development 
Strategy for 2017–2021, the government has identified infrastructure 
development as an important factor to enhance competitiveness, support 
industrialization, and improve living conditions of the population (
Tashkent 
Times 
2017).
This chapter focuses on the critical issues in the transport and energy sectors 
by assessing the current status of infrastructure provision and efficiency; 
reviewing the existing policy, legal, and institutional framework; and identifying 
challenges confronting the sectors. The chapter also presents a projection 
of longer-term infrastructure needs to support future growth and identifies 
strategies to support improved domestic and international connectivity and 
energy supply security. 
The export base has diversified and more than doubled, supporting the 
country’s GDP growth (ADB 2011b). Uzbekistan’s location along the ancient 
trade route between Asia and Europe has positioned it at the center of 
commerce and trade in Central Asia for many years. Although Uzbekistan is 
double landlocked, it has been a key transit country and was part of the ancient 
Silk Road’s trade routes. However, the system of transport connection and 
corridors it inherited from the former Soviet Union has restricted opportunities 
for accelerating the country’s development. 

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