Uzbekistan

This report outlines results from the initial pilot-testing of a Scorecard to assess the enabling environment for investment in water security, referred to as 'the Scorecard'. Developed in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank and partners, the Scorecard aims to identify conditions for attracting and maintaining investment in water security. The report outlines the Scorecard's rationale, scoring methodology, and presents its main components. It also provides results from seven Asian countries, namely, Bangladesh, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Uzbekistan, and Sri Lanka. Armenia's findings from a subsequent Eastern European pilot test are also incorporated. This is the first in a sub-set of working papers within the Environment Working Paper series presenting research on the enabling environment for investment in water security. It marks the beginning of a process to apply the tool and support policy reforms. The report refrains from offering policy recommendations, focusing on testing the scorecard's ability to assess conditions to attract and sustain investing in water security. For an illustration of country-specific policy recommendations, please refer to the forthcoming Environment Working Paper 'Enabling environment for investment in water security: Pilot test in the EU’s Eastern Partner Countries - Armenia case study'.

The scale of Uzbekistan’s green transition requires a marked increase in private financing to fill the existing spending gap. The outsized role of the state in Uzbekistan’s economy and its underdeveloped domestic capital market act as significant constraints and call for a diversification of sources to finance the green transition. Since 2021, Uzbekistan has made green bonds a central part of its strategy to fill the financing gap and mobilise new sources of capital for its domestic green infrastructure projects. This publication explores the current market and institutional set-up in Uzbekistan, the reforms that have led to recent issuances of both sovereign and corporate thematic bonds, and the remaining barriers to further uptake of the instrument. The report also provides policy recommendations related to the market's institutional set up, Uzbekistan's regulatory framework for debt capital markets and emerging opportunities for further green bond use aimed at key stakeholders, including policy makers and market participants.

Addressing barriers to private-sector development has been a long-standing ambition of the government of Uzbekistan, with an extensive programme of reforms that began in 2017 redoubling efforts to foster the growth of a more competitive and productive population of private-sector firms. Uzbekistan needs a more dynamic and innovative private sector if it is to meet the challenges and seize the opportunities of the green and digital transitions, which create a new impetus for accelerating these reforms. Elaborating on feedback garnered through a small, focussed survey of foreign firms in Uzbekistan, this report provides new insights into their perceptions of the ongoing reform process and in doing so draws attention to some of the most pressing issues facing policymakers and business.

Since the 1990’s, the countries of Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia (EECCA) have made great progress in pursuing economic development that is also environmentally sustainable. The countries, in collaboration with the GREEN Action Task Force hosted by the OECD, has developed a number of policies aiming to improve environmental quality and social well-being, while creating opportunities for strong economic growth and decent jobs in the region. This report was prepared as the OECD contribution to the ninth 'Environment for Europe' (EfE) Conference (5-7 October 2022). In this context, this report aims to: (i) take stock of progress on policy developments towards a green economy in the EECCA countries; (ii) showcase selected contributions from of the Green Action Task Force that integrate environmental and climate considerations into development pathways of the EECCA countries, and mobilise finance for action; and (iii) provide an outlook for the future, including priority actions that the Task Force in co-operation with the EECCA countries should take to enhance the momentum for green economy transition in the region.

As in many countries, the economies of Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia (EECCA) have been negatively affected by the global COVID-19 pandemic. Their governments responded by addressing the health impacts and providing relief to affected businesses and workers. Many EECCA countries have also implemented measures that will help advance environmental objectives as part of their rescue and recovery plans. Nevertheless, much more needs to be done to ensure that recovery plans accelerate a green transition, thereby building resilience against external shocks. This policy paper analyses measures related to COVID-19 in 11 EECCA countries based on their potential to advance the transition to a greener, climate-resilient and low-carbon economy. Recommendations suggest ways to ensure that governments align efforts to support economic recovery with their objectives on climate change, biodiversity and wider environmental protection.

This report analyses planned infrastructure projects, decision-making frameworks related to infrastructure development and strategic planning documents in eight countries in Central Asia and the Caucasus: Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. It compares current investment flows with countries' national development objectives to identify misalignments and provides policy-makers with recommendations to improve the integration of climate change and other environmental concerns into infrastucture development decision-making processes. The report presents a comprehensive overview of infrastructure investment, primarily in the transport and energy sectors, throughout the region and identifies the risks and opportunities emerging from current investment patterns.