Publication
Mapping research and innovation in the Republic of Uzbekistan
UNESCO’s Global Observatory of Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Instruments (GO-SPIN) country profiles series is designed to expose – through the rigorous application of an assessment lens – usable insights about science, technology and innovation (STI) policies and their context. This is meant to encourage choices that harness research and innovation to achieve national goals.
Uzbekistan is highly committed to STI as a vital tool for achieving socio-economic development, and determined to attain the ambitious goals set to be achieved by 2030. Since the country gained independence in 1991, the leadership changed for the first time at the end of 2016 with the election of the new president. After assuming office, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev initiated reforms not only to establish a market-oriented economy and improve the business climate, but also to increase investment in R&D and innovation as well as the commercialization of research results.
As Uzbekistan moves towards creating an innovation-driven economy, it needs to build up a fully-fledged national innovation system (NIS), pursue more effective STI governance, create a balanced STI policy mix and continue to invest in building STI capacities. The innovation system of Uzbekistan is evolving rapidly and several elements of it are at a nascent stage. At this stage of development, there is a need to avoid task duplication and fragmentation, and enhance coordination between NIS institutions. Dynamizing the NIS in Uzbekistan also requires encouraging the creation of innovation intermediaries and service providers to facilitate the creation, diffusion and use of knowledge, technology and innovation. As rightly brought to the fore by the government recently, reducing the regional disparities in Uzbekistan and addressing region-specific challenges necessitates a special focus on the development of local and regional innovation ecosystems.
Currently, the majority of the STI policy instruments in Uzbekistan concentrate on research performers and start-ups, with the primary focus being research commercialization, mainly through start-up projects. Thus, there is a need to develop and maintain a balanced policy mix. Achieving progress and success in this process requires the development of skills and capacities in STI policy making and implementation. Capacity building is also needed for the management teams and researchers in the research institutes, universities and the private sector. Furthermore, motivating the younger population towards STEM careers from an early age, engaging students in meaningful real-life problem-solving situations throughout the educational life cycle, and increasing the participation of women in research, higher education and STI-driven entrepreneurship are important for achieving sustainable and innovation-based development.
In this volume Mapping Research and Innovation in the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Islamic Development Bank, the Government of Uzbekistan and UNESCO have collaborated to prepare an evidence-based policy analysis of Uzbekistan’s STI profile. The present profile aligns with the methodology of the Global Observatory of Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Instruments (GO-SPIN), a UNESCO tool to map research and innovation at country level
