Uzbekistan Works On “Visit Uzbekistan Year” To Draw More Tourists

By Nabilah Saleh TASHKENT (Uzbekistan), July 3 (Bernama) -- Uzbekistan has started work on realising the ‘Visit Uzbekistan Year’ programme, which aims to emulate Malaysia’s renowned ‘Visit Malaysia Year’ concept, in an effort to entice more tourists to the Central Asian state. Uzbekistan Deputy Tourism Minister Alisher Shamsiyev said that the Uzbek government is currently working on the project, which could possibly get off the ground in a few more years. Shamsiyev (picture) made the announcement at a briefing to a Malaysian delegation, comprising Malaysian travel agents and journalists, who were on a one-week familiarisation trip that ended last Friday, to three main cities in Uzbekistan, namely Tashkent, Samarkand and Bukhara. He admitted that several procedures needed to be looked into, including sorting out the visas, in order to realise this project. “Although, we are fully aware that a lot of work needs to be done, which involves many ministries here, this is another project that we are currently pushing on. Malaysia is currently open to more than 18 countries for free visa access, similarly, we are hoping and looking forward to reach that level (with Uzbekistan) in the future,” Shamsiyev said. He said that approximately 1.3 million tourists visited Uzbekistan every year, adding, “This is a small figure for us as we possibly lack in providing good infrastructure and facilities in some areas, especially along the Silk Road – from Hunza province to Samarkand city.” To further develop these infrastructural facilities, Uzbekistan was negotiating with investors from the US, Russia, South Korea and China to work on projects like building different types of tourist class hotels, bed and breakfasts, restaurants and road systems. Yet, he noted that there was not much interest coming from Malaysian investors in this regard. “We are open to working with our Malaysian partners and investors who are interested (in our country), especially since the Uzbek government offers privileges such as tax exemption,” said the deputy minister while noting that the tourism sector has developed with the help of more than 800 travel agencies today, as opposed to only four to five travel agencies found in 1993. Another effort to attract tourists to this country of over 27 million people is the familiarisation programme, which is in its second year, Shamsiyev said. This programme is aimed to further promote Uzbekistan’s potential in tourism across the international market, he said. The idea to invite global tour operators and writers, including those from Malaysia, to showcase what Uzbekistan has to offer in terms of tourism, was mooted by the former Malaysian Tourism Minister Abdul Kadir Sheikh Fadzir. “Today tourism has become an important means to promote Uzbek culture and economy,” he added. Uzbekistan, which gained its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, shares borders with Kazakhstan (west), Kyrgyzstan (north), Tajikistan (east), and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan in the south. According to the Malaysian embassy in Uzbekistan, the total Malaysia-Uzbekistan trade reached US$36.1 million last year while Petronas was the leading Malaysian investor in Uzbekistan with investments worth US$350 million last year. Diplomatic relations between Uzbekistan and Malaysia, which were developed over the last 20 years, have strengthened the multifaceted and longer-term cooperation between the two nations. (photoBERNAMA) MALAYSIA