On 14 August 2026, UNESCO-ICHEI was invited to participate in Uzbekistan's national‑level higher education conference. The event was organised by the Center for the Development of Higher Education and Global Cooperation under the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovation of the Republic of Uzbekistan, and focused on the theme "Developing Higher Education Services: Improving the Quality of Educational Programs, Supporting Entrepreneurship in Education, and Expanding Employment Opportunities". The conference brought together more than 250 participants, including leaders and experts from universities across Uzbekistan, officials from government education bodies, as well as representatives of diplomatic missions, international organisations, public funds, and academic institutions from the United Kingdom, Australia, China, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and other countries.

In the opening session, Mr. Kongratbay Sharipov, Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation of Uzbekistan, highlighted the country's comprehensive efforts to advance higher education reform. He underscored improving educational quality, strengthening alignment between academic programs and labour‑market needs, and enhancing international competitiveness as core strategic priorities. He noted that the government will continue refining regulatory frameworks, upgrading curriculum content, and expanding diverse development pathways for students and graduates.

Mr. Kongratbay Sharipov, Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation of Uzbekistan

Mr. Michael Holgate, Director of the British Council Representative Office in Uzbekistan, emphasised that international cooperation plays a critical role in improving teaching standards, promoting English‑language education, and accelerating the internationalisation of universities. He noted that Uzbek higher education institutions are undergoing a pivotal transformation in curriculum modernisation and partnership expansion, and that international collaboration will serve as an important driving force.

Mr. Salim Salamah, Regional Education Adviser at the British Embassy in Tashkent, added perspectives on capacity‑building and digital transformation. He called on universities to strengthen the ability of faculty and students to adapt to rapid technological change, and advocated for cross‑institutional collaboration to enhance innovation capacity and systemic resilience.

As the representative of an international organisation, Mr. XU Mingshun, Chief of the Administrative Affairs Office of UNESCO-ICHEI, delivered a keynote speech. Taking the IIOE Uzbekistan National Centre, jointly established by UNESCO-ICHEI and Tashkent University of Information Technologies, as an example, he demonstrated how the IIOE Uzbekistan National Centre leverages the IIOE platform and its course resources to provide localized capacity-building on digital and artificial intelligence competencies for higher education professionals, while promoting industry-academia collaboration to support the integrated digital transformation of higher education institutions. The presentation highlighted that, on 13 August 2026, the two sides officially launched the IIOE “AI + Cross-Border E-Commerce” Micro-certification Pilot Project in Uzbekistan. The initiative aims to respond to the rapidly growing e-commerce industry in Uzbekistan by providing university teachers and students, as well as industry practitioners with modular training that integrates AI applications with practical cross-border e-commerce skills, thereby creating a pathway for translating classroom learning into workplace competencies. He noted that UNESCO-ICHEI will continue to deepen its cooperation with Uzbekistan in localized teacher training and industry-education integration, contributing to the development of highly skilled industry professionals equipped for the digital economy era.