Uzbekistan's State Programme for 2018

The Government of Uzbekistan adopted a new State Programme for 2018. The Programme is designed to further implement the Action Strategy for the five priority development areas of the Republic of Uzbekistan in 2017-2021 during 2018, the "Year of support to active entrepreneurship, innovative ideas and technologies."

The Programme covers the following areas:  public administration, the rule of law and further reform of the judicial and legal system, economic development and support of active entrepreneurship, social sphere, as well as security, inter-ethnic harmony and religious tolerance and foreign policy.

The State Programme priorities include the development and further promotion of the legislative documents that will improve the legal basis for the status of judges with a view to ensure the independence of judges, elaborate additional legal measures guaranteeing objectivity and thoroughness of pre-investigation checks, inquiry and preliminary investigation.

The State Programme is also committed to protection of state borders, and envisages "Improvement of the material and technical base of the border troops in the system of guarding and protection of the state border." The UNODC Regional Office for Central Asia is ready to support the initiative through creation of the Interagency Mobile Teams in six regions of Uzbekistan, as well as through the operations of the Border Liaison Offices and Port Control Units, established to counter illicit drug trafficking and related crimes.

Furthermore, the State Programme talks about improvement of forensic laboratories through implementation of "ISO/IEC 17025" standards, development of an interagency electronic system to monitor timing and quality of forensic examination, strengthening the material and technical support for the forensic centers, and establishment of new types of forensic examinations. UNODC Regional Office for Central Asia supports the accreditation of the forensic laboratories of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Uzbekistan, and promotes Uzbekistan's participation in the International Collaborative Exercises (ICE) Programme that helps drug-testing laboratories worldwide assess their own performance and take corrective actions, and is considered as an essential element for obtaining accreditation.

The State Programme is also focused on preventing and countering violent extremism. UNODC is committed to work with national counterparts to contribute to the fight against this inhumane threat. It is obvious that Uzbekistan is playing a key role in preventing terrorism and violent extremism in the Central Asian region.

Much of this reflects the priority areas outlined in the "Plan of practical measures ("Road Map") on further development of cooperation of the Republic of Uzbekistan and UNODC 2017-2019" was signed by UNODC and Uzbekistan in December 2017 in Vienna, Austria. Both the State Programme and the Road Map aim to foster regional cooperation in rule of law and anti-corruption, combat transnational organized crime and terrorism measures. The two documents are aligned with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of the United Nations, specifically on the Goal #3, Goal#5 and Goal #16. 

"The UNODC Regional Office for Central Asia stands committed in furthering its cooperation, and is ready to assist Uzbekistan in strengthening rule of law and building strong criminal justice system, combatting drugs and terrorism, and actualization of the principles in its reform agenda"  - said Ms. Ashita Mittal, the UNODC Regional Representative for Central Asia in her interview to the Information and Analytical Multimedia Center under the General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Uzbekistan on 9 February 2018.

UNODC

For the reference: The Information and Analytical Multimedia Center under the General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Uzbekistan aims to timely inform the population of Uzbekistan about ongoing political and legal events, reforms being carried out, the measures being taken by the government authorities towards prevention of crime and violations of law, thus ensuring prompt and adequate response of law enforcement agencies and reliable information for all. The Multimedia Center was officially opened on 8 January 2018.