Tashkent, Uzbekistan, April 8
By Demir Azizov- Trend:
Uzbekistan in accordance with a presidential decree will attract loans in the amount of $ 78 million from Japan Bank for International Cooperation and Japan's commercial banks for the implementation of the project on the development of a digital terrestrial TV network in the country.
The sources for funding of the project worth $ 92 million were determined in accordance with the decree of the Head of State Islam Karimov adopted at the end of last week.
Some 15 percent of the project cost, or $ 14 million will be provided by Center of radio contact, broadcast and television, the State Committee for Communications, Information and Telecommunications Technologies and ICT Development Fund, according to the document.
And some 85 percent ($ 78 million) - JBIC confessional loan funds and Japanese commercial banks under the cover of the Japanese Agency on export insurance provided for a period of 13 years subject to a three-year grace period.
Plans are to hold a competitive selection of the best offers from suppliers of leading Japanese manufacturers of digital television transmitters within the next month.
This project implementation will provide full coverage of settlements in the country with digital terrestrial television broadcasting by the year 2018 under the State program on technical and technological transition to digital broadcasting in the Republic of Uzbekistan.
The document provides a number of taxes and customs benefits and preferences for the project participants.
As of 2013, 45 percent of the Uzbek population was covered by digital TV.
Translated by S.I.
Edited by C.N.