Japan To Continue Supporting Uzbekistan's Development Goals - Ambassador (Exclusive Interview)

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 17. Japan will continue to provide support that contributes to achieving Uzbekistan's development goals as well as reaching out to the people most in need as a trustworthy and reliable partner, Ambassador of Japan to Uzbekistan Takashi Hatori told Trend in an exclusive interview.

"Japan and Uzbekistan have developed strong bilateral relations based on friendship and mutual trust. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1992, Japan has been supporting Uzbekistan's open and stable development in various areas such as economic infrastructure improvement, health and medical care, education, agriculture, and human resources development," he said.

Takashi Hatori noted that Japan has been implementing various projects in the fields of health and medical care in Uzbekistan for many years.

"Uzbekistan focuses on health system improvement and capacity building of medical professionals to bring its medical services up to world-class standards. Japan's economic cooperation projects are in line with the priorities of Uzbekistan, which provide much-needed assistance to the people," he said.

The ambassador highlighted the provision of the mobile medical container as an example of Japan's cooperation with Uzbekistan. In August 2022, Japan handed over three CT scanners and one mobile medical container to medical institutions in Uzbekistan. They have been well utilized and have gained high praise from medical professionals and patients.

"On July 2, Japan and Uzbekistan signed an agreement for the new project, which builds on the success of our previous project. Under the project, we are planning to procure four additional mobile medical containers, enabling us to cover whole regions of Uzbekistan," Takashi Hatori stressed.

He emphasized that another example of Japan's cooperation in the health and medical sector in Uzbekistan is the provision of medical equipment to the University Clinic of Karakalpakstan Medical Institute. Under the project, sets of medical equipment such as CT scanners, mobile clinics, and portable X-rays, including products from Japanese companies, were provided. In addition, Japan provided medical simulators for the training of medical personnel.

"Japan and Uzbekistan have enjoyed a close partnership and fruitful cooperation in various fields. Regarding the areas of focus that Japan and Uzbekistan plan to work together on, we will develop cooperation in line with a new model emphasizing “Investment in People” and“Quality of Growth,” which was confirmed at the 9th Foreign Ministers' Meeting of the“Central Asia plus Japan” Dialogue held in Tokyo in December 2022," the ambassador added.

As he noted, in order to strengthen Uzbekistan's industrial competitiveness and to expand employment opportunities, Japan will provide support for the promotion of sectors with comparative advantages (horticulture, livestock, and tourism), foreign investment promotion, business human resources development, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) promotion, and technological innovation.

Takashi Hatori stressed that Japan will also aim to develop industrial human resources by utilizing employment opportunities in the country. Areas such as health and medical care, education, green growth, and the and the promotion of interregional cooperation in Central Asia continue to be priority areas of cooperation.

"In addition to official development assistance projects, we have observed many positive developments in our relationship, not only at the government level but also among the private sector, academic institutions, and local governments. The "Central Asia plus Japan" Dialogue Summit Meeting is scheduled to be held this year. We would like to take this opportunity to expand cooperation with Uzbekistan in an even wider range of fields," the ambassador added.

Meanwhile, the trade turnover volume between Uzbekistan and Japan reached $188.2 million from January through May 2024. This figure indicates a 162 percent increase compared to the same period last year ($71.7 million in January–May 2023).

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