Tashkent, Uzbekistan – 9 August 2024. The International Scientific and Practical Seminar on the "Transformation of Higher Education in Uzbekistan: Pathways to Global Excellence and Innovation in Partnership with Japan" was held at the University of World Economy and Diplomacy (UWED).
The event was organized by the Institute for Advanced International Studies at UWED as the concluding part of a large-scale project implemented by the Institute in collaboration with the Nippon Foundation (Japan).
The project involved a comprehensive study of the current state, challenges, and prospects of the higher education system in Uzbekistan, with the aim of engaging scholars and experts in the process of its further reform, as well as developing a network of scientific and educational contacts between Central Asia and Japan. The study covered higher education institutions in the city of Tashkent, the Republic of Karakalpakstan, and the Fergana, Samarkand, and Surkhandarya regions. Sociological surveys and in-depth interviews were conducted with the participation of more than 1,270 respondents, including students, university management, faculty, and industry specialists.
The final event in the capital presented the research findings. The scientific and practical seminar brought together a distinguished group of participants, including representatives from relevant ministries and agencies of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Embassy of Japan in Tashkent, the Nippon Foundation leadership, and academics from leading universities in Central Asia and Japan.
Four panel discussions were organized, in which experts discussed in detail the issues of improving the quality of higher education in Uzbekistan; the interaction between the economy and higher education; the challenges of academic independence, the popularization of science, the financing and commercialization of research projects; and the experience of cooperation between Japan and Uzbekistan in the fields of science and education.
Based on the discussion materials, practical recommendations will be developed, which will become an important supplement to the final research report.
