The article considers aspects concerning effective coordination of scientific-technological development in Uzbekistan. In the conditions of new economy, insufficient development and use of innovations in the domestic economy will contain the rate of economic growth for any country. Government policies should enhance cooperation among R&D structures and businesses to induce competitive innovations into the national economy.Socio-economical, intellectual potential, highly-skilled personnel, ideas and innovations, knowledge, R&D., Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, O31, O32, UDC: 62.001.33,

Azimov, Abror

English

Research Papers in Economics

Perspectives of Innovations, Economics & Business, Volume 5, Issue 2, 2010 
www.pieb.cz 
 
International Cross-Industry Journal  
111 
 
SCIENTIFIC-TECHNOLOGICAL PROGRESS 
OF UZBEKISTAN: PROBLEMS AND 
PROSPECTS 
 
  ABROR AZIMOV, Ph.D. 
 
World Economy and International Economic                       
Relations Department, 
Tashkent State University of Economics, Uzbekistan 
 
JEL Classifications: O31, O32;  UDC: 62.001.33 
Key words: Socio-economical, intellectual potential, highly-skilled personnel, ideas and innovations, knowledge, R&D. 
Abstract:  The  article  considers  aspects  concerning  effective  coordination  of  scientific-technological  development  in 
Uzbekistan. In the conditions of new economy, insufficient development and use of innovations in the domestic economy will 
contain the rate of economic growth for any country. Government policies should enhance cooperation among R&D structures 
and businesses to induce competitive innovations into the national economy. 
ISSN: 1804-0527 (online)  1804-0519 (print)    PP. 111-112 
 
Social, economical, and cultural activities of any society 
have  always  been  linked  with  scientific-technological 
progress. The developed countries of the world have already 
started investing significant funds into scientific research and 
innovation, understanding that solid returns and market gains 
can only be accomplished through implementation the most 
sophisticated achievements of the science and technologies. 
However,  the  contemporary  science  must  provide  not  only 
significant  economic  benefits,  but  also  deliver  sustainable 
development for the society.  
In  this  context,  studies  in  organization  of  research  and 
innovation  activities  in  countries  with  transition  economies 
have  become  extremely  important.  Apparently,  achieving 
significant  progress  in  development  of  science  and 
technologies, innovation entrepreneurship in CIS countries is 
rather difficult at the moment. This problem originates   from 
period when the scientific research institutions in the former 
Soviet  Union  were  assigned  to  carry  out  military-industrial 
orders with limited opportunities for independent introduction 
of  new  products  into  the  market.  It  was  one  of  the  major 
disadvantages of the centrally planned system in the area of 
scientific  development.  Socialistic  model  of  production  did 
not  maintain  a  well-formed  back-up  infrastructure  of 
horizontal links between industrial enterprises, scientific and 
financial organizations.  
Nowadays, public institutions in countries with transition 
economies  are  facing  challenges  concerning  coordination, 
management of the research activities, and identification of 
priorities of the science development in market competitive 
environment.  Authorities  face  difficulties  in  establishing 
criteria,  forms  and  methods  of  financing  the  science.  The 
science seeks to count complexity and specifics of the short-
term and long-term tasks to be resolved to ensure sustainable 
development.  And  this  fact  makes  the  governments  of  the 
countries,  in  particular,  countries  with  the  transition 
economies, take a special efforts to develop own scientific-
technological policy as well as to formulate the strategy of the 
development  and  methods  of  efficient  management  of  the 
science.  
In Uzbekistan, like in many other countries, the science 
development  is  financed  mainly  by  the  state.  In  1992  the 
presidential decree “About the state support of a science and 
development of innovative activity” set important role of state 
in coordination of national science and technology policy. To 
make the management efficient, there was established under 
the Government the  Committee on Coordination of Science 
and Technology Development (CCSTD). This Committee is 
chaired  by  the  Prime-Minister.  The  executive  bodies  of 
CCSTD are the Center on the Science and Technology and  
the Council on the appraisal and expertise of the scientific and 
innovation  projects.  About  803  innovative  projects  were 
conducted during 1998 -2008 by different industry agencies 
and ministries (Table 1).  
 
TABLE 1. INNOVATION PROJECTS EXECUTED IN UZBEKISTAN DURING 1998 -2008 
 Ministries and departments  % from total  Quantities  
of projects 
Academy of sciences  17.6%  141 
Ministry of the higher and secondary education  21.0%  169 
Ministry of rural and a water management  19.3%  155 
Ministry of health  9.3%  75 
scientific organizations of other ministries and departments  32.8%  263 
Total  100  100 
Source: Statistical data of the Committee on coordination of science and technologies development under                                                               
the Cabinet of the Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan, 2009. 
 
Through  programs  intended  to  finance  and  support  a 
science every state anticipates the return of the investments, 
strengthening  a  country  position  on  international  market, 
development of national technological market. Therefore, the 
state investing in science requires a comprehensive  analysis 
of the results of the promoted scientific studies and projects.  
Taking into consideration the importance of this problem 
the  Government  of the  Uzbekistan  assigned the  CCSTD  to Perspectives of Innovations, Economics & Business, Volume 5, Issue 2, 2010 
www.pieb.cz 
 
International Cross-Industry Journal  
112 
solve the range of responsibilities in the sphere of scientific 
and technical policy, particularly: 
-  setting  short-,    mid-  and  long-term  tasks  of  the 
fundamental and applied studies, in coordination with the 
strategy of the economic and social development;  
-  promoting  large  scientific  programs  and  technological 
projects  corresponding  to  the  strategic  development 
priorities;  
-  ensuring  effective  utilizing  of  delivered  public  funds  to 
finance scientific and technological activities.  
It is well known, new goods or technologies introduced to 
the  market  by  enterprises,  especially  in  countries  with 
transitional  economies,  run  the  high  risk.  Many  companies 
and enterprises often have to solve the question, whether it is 
reasonable to enter the local market with a completely new 
product? The risk level varies greatly and is directly related to 
the degree of the novelty of the product or technology. It’s not 
a secret that the new and innovative products have the higher 
level of uncertainty how the market will react.  
The main omissions while introducing new products to the 
market stem from the following specific sources: inadequate 
analysis  of  the  external  factors  of  the  environment  the 
businesses  operate,  including    proper  understanding  the 
market trends, competitors’ behavior; inadequate analysis of 
the  internal  innovation,  production,  financial  and  other 
potentialities;  ineffective  marketing  and  insufficient  (or 
unprofessional) support to the new product introduced to the 
market.  
Thus,  activity  of  CCSTD  in  analysis  in  approving 
fundamental  and  applied  research  and  innovation  programs 
provides the additional marketing capacity to national science 
potential.  The  benefit  of  these  state  programs  is  that  they 
mirror  priorities  of  the  economical  development  of  the 
country,  approach  to  science  and  technology  tasks  through 
prism  of  main  indexes  and  indicators  of  sustainable 
development,  including  ones  of  education  development, 
health protection, water, geo-, and bio-resources conservation, 
recycling of dangerous industrial and domestic wastes, control 
of  soil  desertification  and  others.  Such  state  scientific 
programs  are  associated  with  the  industrial  and  economic 
activity of enterprises, firms and companies. 
The  main  challenge  for  Uzbekistan  is  to  establish 
comprehensive  state-support  system  which  could  play  the 
guiding and leading role for domestic science and innovative 
business  structures.  Such  system  appears  to  cover  all 
dimensions of research and technology development policy - 
fundamental and applied research, public and private research, 
science-business  integration,  international  cooperation  and 
evolvement, sustaining national competitiveness and security. 
Accordingly, the Government should develop effective policy 
tools covering grants, loans and tax incentives, information 
and  marketing  services,  legal  advising,  infrastructure 
development,  investing  in  education  in  education  and 
technology.   
It  seems  that  one  of  decisive  factors  promoting 
advancement  of  technology  in  social  and  economic 
development is bridging between science and business. The 
more  adequate  and  developed  links  and  channels  are  built 
between academic and business sectors, the more holistic and 
sustainable the innovation generating cycle.     
It is recognized that governments in developing countries 
can  contribute  essentially  to  promote  business  activities  in 
science,  technology,  and  innovation  (UN,  2005).  The 
government  of  Uzbekistan  seeks  ways  to  bring  innovative 
prospects  into  national  business  development.  Particular 
attention is given to the development of small and medium 
businesses. Though the small business sector has lack of high 
technology, it keeps significant potential to absorb supply of 
inventions and novelties from research and development.  
Considering  this  fact  the  Government  successively 
develops  annual  innovation  fairs  where  national  and 
international project providers and investors have opportunity 
to  meet  and  discuss  commercialization  of  applied novelties 
offered by universities and research institutes.  
Companies  in  Uzbekistan  started  creating  specialized 
innovation divisions which are dealing with manufacturing of 
production pieces of new equipment. Such tendency makes 
links between research and business closer, gives incentives to 
science  institutions  to  focus  on  practical  needs  of 
manufacturers. Leading innovative enterprises can attract the 
talented researchers and develop their own corporate science 
infrastructures,  thereby  providing  effective  integration  of 
science-business processes. Supportive role of state is crucial 
for  such  emerging  national  companies,  sufficient  and  well-
timed support can ensure the growth path of companies on 
competitive  market.  As  experience  shows,  establishing  of 
interaction  between  government  and  small  innovation 
companies contributes to mitigation of contradiction between 
the  huge  available  scientific  potential  and  the  necessity  to 
reform cardinally the technical basis of all sectors of national 
economy.  
The  established  mechanism  of  government  support  of 
research  and  innovation  activity  has  already  given  certain 
results. Small scale enterprises begin to produce new, high-
quality products, and compete with large-scale enterprises and 
importers. However, there is a lot work to do and only first 
steps  have  been  done  on  the  way  of  national  science  and 
technology development. Regardless of of achieved positive 
results,  CCSTD  recognizes  depressed  level  of  demand  to 
innovations  on  side of  national  business.  Well thought  and 
good designed science and technology policy should mobilize 
national  community  resources  -  universities,  institutes, 
associations, companies, etc. - and consolidate their efforts, 
coordinate  their  science  and  innovation  programs.  
International historical and contemporary experience offers a 
wide  set  of  tools,  methods  and  policies  that  proved  their 
efficiency in practice. 
References 
Act, 2006. Act of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan (PP-
436) on establishing Committee on coordination of science and 
technology development   
Decree, 1992. Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan 
“About  the  state  support  of  a  science  and  development  of 
innovative activity”, NoUP-438, dated 08.07.1992. 
Friedman,  D.,  1990.  Price  theory:  An  intermediate  text,  South-
Western Publishing Co. 
UN Millennium Project, 2005. Innovation: Applying knowledge in 
development. Achieving the Millennium development goals.  

SCIENTIFIC-TECHNOLOGICAL PROGRESS OF UZBEKISTAN: PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS

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