The President of Uzbekistan met with the heads of leading companies and banks in Germany

As part of the business program of his visit to Germany, Shavkat Mirziyoyev met on May 3 with the heads of leading companies and financial institutions of this country, the press service of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan reports.

The event from the German side was attended by the heads of the Eastern Committee of the German Economy, the German-Uzbek Business Council, the German Energy Agency, the heads of about 30 largest companies and banks, such as CLAAS, Knauf, Siemens Energy, Lasselsberger, Aurubis, Linde Group, Gunter Papenburg, Falk-Porsche-Technik, Mangold Consulting, DB Engineering, Landesbank, Commerzbank, KfW Bank, Deutsche Bank and others.

The dialogue in this format was first held in January 2019, during the official visit of the head of our state to Germany.

As a result, a number of joint high-tech projects were launched in Uzbekistan to modernize sectors of the economy, trade, economic and investment partnerships were noticeably intensified.

Opening the meeting, the President of Uzbekistan emphasized the achieved high level of trust and mutual respect in relations with Germany. More than 60 projects totaling 5 billion euros are being implemented in our country with the participation of German partners.

Only in recent years, the volume of German investments has amounted to 4 billion euros, the number of joint ventures has doubled. Such “locomotives” of the German economy as CLAAS, Knauf, Gunter Papenburg, Linde Group and Falk-Porsche-Technik are successfully operating in Uzbekistan.

The German-Uzbek Business Council, chaired by the Prime Minister from the Uzbek side, has become an important mechanism for regular “synchronization of watches”.

The President emphasized that the key role in the implementation of the breakthrough agreements reached during the current visit and further joint plans can and should be played by business circles.

Thus, on the sidelines of the Uzbek-German business forum held the day before, a number of new trade, financial and investment agreements were signed to develop industrial cooperation and expand technological partnership by 9 billion euros.

We are talking about large-scale projects in the areas of “green” energy, the development of transport infrastructure, metallurgy, water supply, agriculture, chemical, mining, automotive, textile, electrical industries and other areas.

It is planned to expand cooperation in the banking and financial sector, in particular on project financing with such major German banks as Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, KfW and Landesbank.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev noted Uzbekistan’s readiness to become an effective and reliable platform for German business in the new realities of large-scale and serious shocks in the global economy.

To this end, the necessary conditions and unique opportunities have been created for investors, as well as a favorable fiscal system – the number of taxes has been reduced, VAT rates have been reduced, and a number of customs duties have been canceled. An administrative reform has been carried out.

According to the new Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan, guarantees to ensure the inviolability of private property are strengthened, provisions are clearly established on the creation by the state of conditions for fair competition and the independence of the judiciary.

It was especially emphasized that now the state guarantees the rights of investors and their protection in court. From now on, not entrepreneurs, but government agencies will be required to prove the legality of their decisions. And any emerging ambiguities will be interpreted in favor of investors.

“A foreign investor should associate Uzbekistan primarily with stability, reliability and predictability,” Shavkat Mirziyoyev noted. “We are ready to create all conditions for every German businessman to feel free and confident in our country. By combining the advanced developments and innovative technologies of Germany with the resources and human potential of Uzbekistan, we can achieve great results.

The dialogue with entrepreneurs once again showed the great interest of the German business community in building up cooperation.

During the exchange of views, representatives of German business circles highly appreciated the practical significance of the reforms being implemented in Uzbekistan, which create prerequisites for more ambitious and long-term plans of German business to carry out investment activities in our country.

At the meeting, specific proposals were made by the leaders of German companies. Readiness was expressed for further continuation of practical cooperation and expansion of cooperation in priority areas with the introduction of high-tech and innovative solutions.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev sincerely thanked the German business representatives for their current initiatives, expressed satisfaction with the substantive dialogue that had taken place and instructed the heads of relevant ministries and departments to approve a road map that provides for the joint development of projects and, in general, the implementation of the agreements reached during the visit.