Rural futures in focus: Uzbekistan

When most people think of Uzbekistan, they picture shimmering Silk Road cities and architectural marvels. But that’s not the whole picture. About half the country’s population lives in rural areas, many of them on family farms known as dehkan.

We caught up with Laura Mattioli, IFAD’s Country Director for Uzbekistan, to learn more.

What are the unique challenges that rural people face in Uzbekistan?

Although Uzbekistan is considered a middle-income country, many rural people are still struggling. Targeted policies have reduced poverty overall, but food security remains below average for the region. Women and young people in particular face a persistent gap in employment and land ownership in rural areas.

Meanwhile, climate change is a pressing issue. Uzbekistan's dry continental climate makes it vulnerable to drought, and years of unsustainable water management have put the country in an even more precarious position.

As a result, access to fresh water is declining rapidly. By 2050, Uzbekistan will be short of an estimated 15 billion cubic metres per year, with up to 15 per cent less water in its main rivers.

While small-scale farmers and dehkans use only a fifth of the country’s arable land, they’re responsible for over two-thirds of its agricultural output. Their productivity per hectare is often higher than other farm types.

That's why small farms are an unparalleled opportunity for Uzbekistan to improve food security and diversify its economy. In doing so, the country can continue progressing along the path towards high-income status.

When rural businesses thrive, they create jobs and bring others into the value chain, lifting entire communities with them. Investments in sustainable land and water management, as well as access to markets and credit, can make this possible.

Uzbekistan’s youthful population is another undervalued resource, and with better opportunities, young people can help drive sustainable development. The country is changing fast, with unprecedented levels of trade, investment and tourism, and nobody is better placed to catch the wave than its innovative rural youth.

IFAD has been operating in Uzbekistan since 2012. Since then, we’ve funded projects that have strengthened value chains, created jobs and introduced sustainable farming techniques. We support the diversification of the agricultural sector away from its traditional focus on crops like cotton and wheat, towards promising alternatives like dairy and horticulture.

In the Fergana Valley, for example, ADMP supports small-scale farmers in enhancing the profitability of rural value chains and improving natural resource management. Here, we’ve seen how the right investment at the right time can lead to benefits that ripple across communities.

For me, this is exemplified by Komiljanov, who was once only able to grow tomatoes and cucumbers in the summer. With ADMP's support, he set up six heated greenhouses that are lush and productive even during Uzbekistan's harsh winter.

Today, his family exports tomatoes and cucumbers year-round to Russia, while supplying strawberries to the domestic market. Komiljanov’s growing business has created employment opportunities for local women like Khadija, who is thrilled to earn a steady income while raising her teenage daughter.

We’ve got exciting plans to involve the private sector so that even the poorest rural people in Uzbekistan can access finance. Our partnership with Hamkorbank will channel micro-loans to the smallest dehkans, while PRIME, our remittances initiative, will make it easier for migrant workers to send funds home digitally.

Such initiatives will reap rewards for countless rural people in the years to come, ensuring that they are not left behind as the country develops.

I wish more people knew about the exceptional quality of Uzbekistan’s fruit and vegetables. Markets across the country are filled with a dizzying variety of delicious melons, peaches and apricots.

In fact, everyone from emperors to philosophers have raved about the fruit from this region for centuries. The Silk Road didn't just channel textiles: fruit once travelled along it to Beijing in the east, Delhi in the south and St Petersburg in the west.

The dehkans of Uzbekistan are the epicentre of this delicious diversity. With IFAD's support, they can safeguard it for the future and bring it to the world.