President proposes creation of “Central Asia Tourism Ring”

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has put forward an initiative to create a unified tourism space connecting Central Asian countries, referred to as the “Central Asia Tourism Ring.” He announced the proposal on May 4 during the opening ceremony of the 59th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank in Samarkand.

According to Mirziyoyev, global instability has prompted millions of tourists to seek safer destinations. Central Asia has significant potential in various tourism segments, including pilgrimage, cultural, gastronomic, ethnic, extreme, and medical tourism.

“We have prioritized this sector and implemented reforms aimed at improving infrastructure, services, visa and transport systems, and, most importantly, ensuring tourist safety. As a result, over the past decade, the number of foreign visitors to Uzbekistan has increased sixfold, reaching 12 million,” the president said.

The Center of Islamic Civilization in Tashkent, recently opened and regarded as a scientific and spiritual treasure of Central Asia, along with the Imam Bukhari Memorial Complex built in Samarkand, have become new landmarks of Uzbekistan.

“Similar complexes are being developed in neighboring countries as well. Therefore, we propose the creation of a unified tourism space connecting the countries of the region — the ‘Central Asia Tourism Ring.’ We call on neighboring states, the Asian Development Bank, and other partners to jointly develop and finance a portfolio of tourism projects,” the president said.

The Uzbek leader also noted that all proposed initiatives can be implemented in cooperation with the Asian Development Bank not only through sovereign loans, but also via public-private partnerships, guarantee instruments, blended financing, and the attraction of private capital.

“In this regard, we propose establishing an Innovative Financing Platform for regional projects,” the president added.

Earlier, it was reported that Uzbekistan would join the Asian Development Bank’s “Digital Highway for Asia” initiative.