On February 28, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed the Measures to develop competition and bolster the role of the private sector in the economy Decree.
According to the document, the exclusive rights (monopoly) of the following entities will be canceled from April 1:
- JSC Uzbekexpertiza — the right to issue certificates for property imported by enterprises with foreign investment for their production;
- Design Institute UzEngineering (put up for sale in July 2024) — the right to develop pre-project and design documentation for investment projects;
- National PR Center — the right to prepare and broadcast advertisements and reports of foreign companies and media promoting tourism in Uzbekistan;
- LLC Sag agro MTP — the right provide mechanization services to walnut producers for agrotechnical measures;
- State Uzbek Institute of Standards — the right to translate national standards into other languages on a contractual basis.
The Tourism Committee will be in charge of checking travel firms, hotels, ski slopes and beaches for compliance with standards, as well as assigning them categories and standardizing certified services. Previously, this was done by the State Unitary Enterprise "Center for Certification of Tourist Services".
From April 1, exclusive rights for companies in Uzbekistan will be granted only on the basis of laws, decrees and resolutions of the president. The validity period of such rights should not exceed 3 years. They can be granted exclusively for:
- protection of the constitutional order, human health, defense, state security and public order;
- prevention and elimination of natural disasters, catastrophes and epidemics.
Companies added to the register of organizations with exclusive rights must not limit the rights of consumers to purchase goods in the required volume and of proper quality, establish discriminatory conditions when selling or buying goods, not unreasonably refuse to conclude contracts if it is possible to produce or sell goods, not charge money in excess of the established price for goods with state regulation or for services not rendered.
Starting from 2025, by April 1, government agencies must submit proposals to the Competition Committee on the advisability of canceling or maintaining exclusive rights for companies from the register.
By May 1, the Competition Committee, together with other agencies, will review these proposals, and then by June 1, submit final proposals to the Cabinet of Ministers on canceling or maintaining exclusive rights.
By April 1, 2025, the Committee must conduct an inventory of laws on granting exclusive rights and publish the register of these rights in the media.
As a reminder, by the presidential decree of June 3, from January 1, 2025, the following was canceled:
- the right of Uzmetkombinat to procure (purchase) scrap and waste of ferrous metals in the territory of Uzbekistan;
- the right of JSC Uzvtortsvetmet to procure and export scrap and waste of non-ferrous metals in the territory of the republic;
- the right of Uztrade JSC to ship food flour and wheat, as well as products of small businesses and private entrepreneurship, dehkan and farm enterprises for export without providing a bank guarantee or an insurance policy for export contracts against political and commercial risks to trading houses on a consignment basis;
- the right of the sole agent of Uzkimyoimpex LLC to export chemical products of Uzkimyosanoat JSC organizations, as well as import equipment, spare parts, components, raw materials and materials for their production needs.
From July 1, 2026, UzGasTrade JSC will not be the sole exporter and sole operator for the import of natural gas in a centralized way from external sources, and Uzenergosotish will lose the right to centralized export and import of electricity.
Since October 2023, a register of companies granted exclusive rights has been in effect in Uzbekistan. The Competition Development Committee shall be in charge of maintaining this list and monitoring compliance with the conditions for preventing discrimination.
