On August 22 this year, in anticipation of the state visit of Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, to the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Uzbek-Azerbaijani Business Forum was held in Tashkent.

The breakthrough pace of development of multifaceted Uzbek-Azerbaijani interaction was noted. Over the last 5 years, mutual trade turnover has tripled, and since the beginning of this year, the figure has grown by another 20%. Both countries are actively working to achieve the goal set by the state leaders – to increase the volume of mutual trade to $1 billion in the near future.

The scope of investment cooperation is expanding in the most priority sectors of the economy – from energy and urban development to mechanical engineering, from the textile and silk industry to agriculture. Major Azerbaijani companies such as PASHA Holding, MATANAT, SARDA Group, SOCAR, and many others are successfully operating in Uzbekistan. In turn, major Uzbek companies such as Global Textile, AZ Silk, BIZNESTEKS are actively represented in the regions of Azerbaijan.

The joint Investment Company has been launched, which has become the driving force behind the expansion of investment interaction. A specific portfolio of projects in light and food industries, green energy, healthcare, and other areas has been formed.

As a result of the forum, a solid package of bilateral documents was signed in the areas of infrastructure development and city construction, creation of new logistics centers, educational institutions, and representations of industry associations in the partner countries. A joint “Roadmap” was also adopted, which reflects specific tasks for the development of cooperation and the timelines for their implementation.

In addition, on the sidelines of the high-level visit, the “Made in Azerbaijan” exhibition was opened.