In 2021, the economy of Uzbekistan will grow by 5.6%, in 2022 – by 6%, Spot reports referring to the updated forecast of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in the Regional Economic Prospects (REP) report.

According to it, key sectors of the national economy, such as the service sector, general industry, construction and agriculture, showed growth. Despite the pandemic, the report notes that important market reforms continue in the country, including the privatization of state-owned enterprises and banks.

The overall forecast for Central Asia has been revised for the better, although the recovery is far from uniform. The region’s economy is projected to grow by 4.5% in both 2021 and 2022, driven by higher commodity prices, which benefit exporters of raw materials, and a rebound in remittances.

The active roll-out of vaccination programs and the improvement of the health situation are allowing the gradual move away from social distancing measures and other restrictions. As a result, the countries’ economies were rebooted.

Generally, the volumes of industrial production and retail sales recovered, and the mobility of the population in the regions in which the Bank invests, in most cases returned to the level observed before the pandemic.

The projection for international tourism remains very dim due to the persistence of large-scale travel restrictions, and tourism-dependent countries continue to suffer.

Public debt in many countries is at levels last seen during a recession in the early 1990s and could rise even further. Although the level of bankruptcies has so far been contained thanks to active political support, problems may arise when government support measures are curtailed.

Earlier, the EBRD predicted that the economy of Uzbekistan in 2021 will grow by 4.5%.