Baku, Azerbaijan, February 28
By Fakhri Vakilov - Trend:
Uzbekistan and World Bank (WB) this year plan to sign a number of loan agreements, including a project to connect the country's users to the high-speed Internet Digital CASA, Trend reports with reference to the press-service of Uzbek Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade.
Vice President of World Bank Cyril Muller agreed on the matter during negotiations with Uzbek Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Sardor Umurzakov.
Digital CASA aims to diversify the channels of transborder Internet traffic and create a communication hub in the region. Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, and Tajikistan are among the participating countries. Central Asia could greatly benefit from the transit of Internet traffic, but this will require commitment to the principles of open access on their part.
The Digital CASA program is in line with the World Bank’s mission of ending extreme poverty and fostering shared prosperity.
"In 2019, approval and signing of loan agreements on a number of significant projects is expected: development of entrepreneurship in the Fergana Valley, digital Uzbekistan (Digital CASA), reconstruction of water supply and sewerage systems in several regions of Uzbekistan," the ministry said.
WB also noted during negotiations that its plans for Uzbekistan are getting bigger. In particular, it is planned to radically expand the range of areas to include four new ones: energy (alternative energy sources), the financial sector, transport and logistics, as well as agriculture.
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