“Uzbekistan is a country that sells electricity to the population at half price” – Alisher Kadirov

“If we make a cruder analogy, Kazakhstan did not make a pro-people policy, quickly introduced the economy in terms of market rules, but we are still a country that sells electricity to the population at half of the cost. That is, this is a pro-people policy,” the deputy said, comparing the economic reforms in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

Alisher Kadirov, deputy speaker of the Legislative Chamber of Oliy Majlis, analyzed the difference between the development of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan in a roundtable discussion organized by Kun.uz website. According to him, after independence, Kazakhstan quickly transitioned to a market economy, which created an opportunity for its development. Uzbekistan is still pursuing a pro-people policy and this is causing certain difficulties in the economy.

“Today, the GDP per capita in Kazakhstan is $10,000, while in Uzbekistan it is around $1,700.

In terms of resources, there is not much difference between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. But in terms of population, Uzbekistan is twice ahead. This gave Kazakhstan an opportunity for development. If we make a rougher analogy, Kazakhstan did not make a pro-people policy, quickly introduced the economy in terms of market rules into its society, but we are still a country that sells electricity to the population at half of the cost. That is, this is a pro-people policy whether you like it or not. Electricity is cheap. We still have a monopoly on energy resources, which is the locomotive of the entire economy.

Government cannot increase energy tariffs for the population. For example, today electricity costs 295 soums. Can we make it 550 soums? No, because people’s average income is low. What causes people to lose their income? The economy is not developed. What is the reason for the economy not developing? There are no clear rules of the game in our energy resources. Before major investors come to us to bet, the first analytical issue when analyzing economic issues is related to energy. Investors see uncertainty and instability there, and this has a negative impact on our development.

Before we analyze the freedom of information, we need to consider and weigh these aspects of the issue. It is necessary to speak after that,” Alisher Kadirov said.

Kun.uz contacted the press service of the Energy Ministry regarding the opinions of the Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Chamber. Sabina Bekmurodova, press secretary of the Ministry, confirming Kadirov’s words, said that electricity is indeed supplied to the population at half price.