A unified Ministry of Education and Science has been established in Uzbekistan. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed the relevant decree, which reorganized and merged the Ministry of Preschool and School Education with the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Innovation.
The main goals of this transformation are stated as building an integrated structure for education, upbringing, and science based on current requirements, as well as improving the quality and effectiveness of learning and comprehensively developing human potential.
This reform is designed to ensure seamless connection and continuity between all stages of the educational process. The new management model will apply to all levels—from kindergartens to higher educational institutions and the research field—and will increase the transparency of the industry's activities to citizens.
Distribution of responsibilities in the new department
Sherzod Asadov detailed how functions will be distributed after the merger of the departments. The new Ministry of Education and Science will oversee the management of kindergartens, schools, vocational lyceums, colleges, and universities, and will also be responsible for establishing standards, accreditation, and licensing of educational activities.
At the same time, the National Agency for Quality Assurance in Education will be tasked with creating and refining curricula and methodological guides, following the guideline set by the president—the 'portrait of the Uzbek school graduate.'
Regarding higher education, the reform involves reducing state control, granting universities greater autonomy, and creating favorable conditions for the development of the private sector, where the success and quality of each university will be determined by market competition.
