Shavkat Mirziyoyev held a meeting on the comprehensive development of Bukhara region and improving living standards, the president’s press secretary Sherzod Asadov reported.
The president said initiatives worth a total of $30 billion were being developed to bring about “positive changes in the economy and daily life” in Bukhara. Improving infrastructure will be one of the main priorities.
In particular, $248 million will be allocated to the construction of water supply and sewerage networks, in addition to the $385 million previously secured from the Asian Development Bank.
The investments are expected to improve water supply for 1.7 million people and provide sewerage services to 775,000 residents of the region. Access to centralised water supply is expected to increase from the current 80% to 95%.
The authorities have also been tasked with completing the reconstruction of the section of the A-380 highway running through the region by the end of this year, according to a separate update. In 2027, work will begin on the repair of 69 km of the M-37 highway and the construction of a 4.5 km bypass road around the regional centre. The projects will cost $200 million.
A toll road between Samarkand and Bukhara with a cement-concrete surface is also planned. It is expected to reduce travel time by more than three times, from five hours to 1.5 hours.
A separate railway line for high-speed trains is also planned between the two cities. Mirziyoyev instructed officials to prepare master plans for the road and railway projects so that negotiations with partners can begin.
Meanwhile, a modern airport worth $300 million is under construction in Bukhara. The future airport will be able to accommodate up to 20 aircraft simultaneously and serve 1,200 passengers per hour.
The airport will be connected to the city by a 24 km highway, which will include a 5.5 km bus rapid transit (BRT) corridor.
Mirziyoyev instructed officials to complete construction of the airport and access road by 1 September 2027, Uzbekistan’s next Independence Day. The authorities have also been tasked with establishing direct flights from Bukhara to Malaysia, Indonesia, Kuwait, Bahrain and Egypt.
The English version of this material was generated with the assistance of AI translation tools and may differ slightly from the original text.
