Uzbekistan – Bavaria: facets of cooperation in the agricultural sector

At the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Minister Aziz Voitov received a delegation from Bavaria headed by State Secretary of the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Forestry of Bavaria Hubert Bittlemeier. This was reported by the press service of the Ministry.

The meeting was also attended by Deputy Minister of Agriculture Umid Mamadaminov and Acting Rector of the Tashkent State Agrarian University Sohib Islamov. The delegation of Bavaria was represented by the Executive Director of the Bavarian Federal Association for Animal Husbandry Johan Ertel, representatives of BayWA AG, the University of Applied Sciences Weinstephan-Triesdorf and others.

In his welcoming speech, Aziz Voitov expressed his sincere joy at the opportunity to personally discuss the development of cooperation in the agricultural sector between our countries.

He then outlined the agenda.

The first issue on the agenda was devoted to the opening in each region of our country of AKIS centers (the center of the knowledge and innovation system in agriculture), which are aimed at integrating science with private business, education and production. In this regard, the experience of Bavaria is particularly interesting.

“Bavaria companies can be even more famous in the Uzbek market due to their high quality and stability of work. I consider it expedient to open a full-scale representative office of Bavarian companies in Uzbekistan to provide consulting services, as well as leasing agricultural equipment and special equipment,” said Aziz Voitov.

The second item on the agenda was from the field of education and concerned joint double degree programs for masters in the direction of “agrarian management”. The issue of increasing quotas for Uzbek students for practical training at agricultural enterprises in Bavaria was also raised. It was noted that the Tashkent State Agrarian University has established partnerships with the University of Applied Sciences Weinstephan-Triesdorf (Bavaria).

Further, digital technologies in agriculture were discussed. It was noted that the innovative element of agricultural development is becoming increasingly relevant in the world. The Center for Digitalization of Agro-Industry under the Ministry of Agriculture operates in Uzbekistan. For our republic, the Bavarian developments of digital platforms for tracking the entire chain of product production – “from the field to the consumer”, as well as monitoring agricultural fields via satellite are of great interest.

At the meeting, attention was paid to cooperation in the production of dairy and meat products in Uzbekistan with the involvement of Bavarian investments. The Uzbek side expressed its readiness to work together with the Bavarian Federal Association of Animal Breeding on the supply of embryos and seed material of highly productive breeds of cattle and small ruminants to Uzbekistan.

A representative of BayWA AG made a presentation showing a wide range of products and services for farmers. BayWa AG is an international group of companies headquartered in Munich (Germany). Initially established to support agriculture, the company has expanded into construction and energy. BayWa AG is represented in more than 50 countries through its subsidiaries and holdings.

The Uzbek side suggested considering the possibility of opening a representative office and a service center, including a trading house, BayWA AG and in Uzbekistan to cover the demand for high-performance agricultural machinery, fertilizers and other goods. She also expressed her readiness to work out the issue of obtaining credit lines from German funds and banks within the framework of programs to support the export of Bavarian manufacturers.

During the meeting, a format for further interaction was developed to strengthen joint cooperation.