A two-day international seminar on "Strengthening the Digital Future of Uzbekistan: Trends, Legal Foundations and Global Opportunities" is being held at the Graduate School of Business and Entrepreneurship with the support of the Asian Development Bank.

The seminar was organized to develop knowledge in the field of e-commerce in Uzbekistan, strengthen international cooperation and strengthen the legal framework of the digital economy.

The seminar was opened by the Deputy Minister of Economy and Finance U. Abidkhodzhaev, Deputy Director of the Graduate School of Business and Entrepreneurship M. Adilov and Specialist of the Department of Legislative Reform of the Asian Development Bank H. Lim.

Leading foreign and domestic experts took part in the event. Among them are Frank Ludwin Shefer (Alibaba Group), Shiyu He (Alibaba.com), M. Azamov (Uzbekistan E-commerce Association), as well as F. Jabborova, an e-commerce specialist with experience in projects of ADB, the World Bank and LUKOIL.

In their speeches, the participants of the event emphasized the need to transform digital technologies into a driving force of the economy, to bring national companies to global markets through e-commerce and to develop international cooperation.

Today, e-commerce in Uzbekistan is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the economy. According to the results of 2024, the volume of trade in the industry amounted to 15.2 trillion soums, which is 108.2% more than in 2023. Currently, more than 1,260 companies are engaged in e-commerce in the country.

During the event, experts discussed the main directions of e-commerce, the conditions for concluding transactions on international trading platforms, market trends and the effective use of existing opportunities in the B2B, B2C and B2G segments. The practical aspects of e-commerce, the need to increase export volumes through digital services, and the improvement of the obligations of industry participants were also noted.

The experts noted the need for a comprehensive approach to the development of e-commerce as an important factor of sustainable economic growth and exchanged views on innovations in cross-border trade, digital marketing, and legal regulation.

 Special attention was also paid to the issues of a comparative study of the legislation of China and Uzbekistan, as well as the application of artificial intelligence technologies in e-commerce.

The seminar is being held as an important stage of digital transformation, contributing to increasing Uzbekistan's global competitiveness, supporting small and medium-sized businesses, and bringing national companies to international markets for goods and services.