Companies will be created at technical colleges in Uzbekistan to support student startups

Uzbekistan is implementing a Higher Education Graduate Quality Index designed to assess how successfully graduates find and retain employment, as well as the income they receive.

According to the plan, twenty universities demonstrating the best results will annually receive financial support of 500 million sums. The index calculation will be based on four key criteria: the percentage of employed graduates, the stability of their employment, average monthly earnings, and employment category. Graduates from both bachelor's and master's programs of the corresponding year will be included in the assessment.

The evaluation of results will be conducted by the Agency for Ensuring Education Quality. For this purpose, a specialized digital platform will be developed that automatically collects data from state body information systems. The launch of this platform is scheduled for before November 10, and the connection of all necessary databases is planned for before December 1.

Educational institutions will be able to track their indicators through personal accounts. If attempts to artificially inflate indicators are detected, the institution risks being excluded from the rating for the current year. Annually, 20 universities with the highest indicators will receive 500 million sums from the state budget, part of which is directed towards supporting university career centers.

It should be noted that earlier reports indicated that approximately one out of six graduates from Uzbek universities could not find employment in the 2024/2025 academic year.

Uzbekistan has already implemented projects worth $7 billion under general agreements with the United States of America, which total $35 billion.

The Minister of Investment, Industry, and Trade, Laziz Kudratov, shared this information in an interview with The Washington Times. However, Kudratov did not disclose details about which specific projects make up the $7 billion amount.

Previously, the parties discussed areas of cooperation, including energy, critical minerals, transport, agriculture, as well as IT and other sectors.

It is worth noting that in November, an agreement on significant trade and economic partnership was reached between Uzbekistan and the US. In the long term, over the next ten years, Uzbekistan plans to direct more than $100 billion into the US economy.

Earlier, Donald Trump mentioned on his social network Truth Social that in the initial stage, i.e., within three years, the volume of Uzbekistan's investment in the US economy would reach approximately $35 billion.

The international technical college 'Andijan-Huanya' was opened in the city of Andijan. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev visited the institution to familiarize himself with its operations. The college is located in the 'Ipak Yuli' industrial zone in the Andijan district.

According to information provided by the head of state's press service, this educational institution is designed to train specialists for textile, mechanical engineering, and electrical production. The project, which was implemented through the attraction of foreign investments, is valued at 15 million US dollars and has created 150 new jobs.

The total area of the college grounds is four hectares, on which an academic building designed for five thousand students has been constructed. Further expansion of the infrastructure is planned, including the construction of a dormitory, a laboratory building, a sports field, and a canteen.

The college operates using a dual education model: students master theoretical material in classrooms and acquire practical skills directly at large enterprises located in the industrial zone. The institution began operations in June of this year, and currently, 210 people are studying there.

Future plans include a significant scaling up: by 2030, the annual enrollment is expected to grow to 1,800 people, and the total number of students should reach four thousand. Additionally, the number of educational specialties will be increased to twenty.

During his visit, the President spoke with youth and investor representatives. It was previously noted that the construction of 206 new investment projects has started in the Andijan region, the launch of which was also symbolically carried out by Shavkat Mirziyoyev.