Beginning in the 1950's, research on organizations emphasized the importance of understanding the wider macro-economic environment in which organizations

operate. An organization on its own cannot affect environmental factors. Conducting a strategic analysis entails scanning the general or macroeconomic environment to detect and understand the broad, long term trends. The PEST analysis divided the general environment into the following categories: 1. Political This relates to the pressures and opportunities brought by changes of the government and public attitudes toward the industry, changes in political institutions and the direction of political processes, legal issues, and the overall regulatory climate. Political factors include government regulations and legal issues and define both formal and informal rules under which the firm must operate. Some examples include: tax policy employment laws environmental regulations trade restrictions and tariffs political stability 2. Economic This refers to a society's economic structures and such variables as the stock exchange, interest and inflation rates, the nation's economic policies and performance, exchange rates, etc. These variables impact differently on different industries. Economic factors affect the purchasing power of potential customers and the firm's cost of capital. The following are examples of factors in the macro economy: economic growth interest rates exchange rates inflation rate 3. Social This refers to cultural attitudes, ethical beliefs, shared values, level of differentiation in lifestyle, demographics, education levels, etc. Observing social factors helps organizations maintain their reputation among stakeholders. Social factors include the demographic and cultural aspects of the external macro environment. These factors affect customer needs and the size of potential markets.

1.1 Subject of the research Uzbekistan is located in the middle of the Central Asia and borders all the other Central Asian republics (Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan), Afghanistan in the south and the Aral Sea in the north-west (see Appendix I: Map of Central Asia). In the old days this region has been the part of the exporting trade route named Silk Road which connected China to Western countries and served as a link between the East and the West exchanging cultures, crafts, ideas, technologies, beliefs and peoples. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the proclamation of

the independence by five Central Asian republics, major efforts have been undertaken to revive the Silk Road for cultural exchange, trade and tourism. Uzbekistan is a core country of the Silk Road and the revival of tourism has become a major priority in the destination development. Nowadays the types of tourism existing in the destination are defined as historical and cultural tourism, religious tourism, business tourism, adventure tours and incentive travel. Uzbekistan is not well-known in the domain of incentive travels, however, the recent years there appeared an interest of the European ITOs with Uzbekistan and several incentive events have taken place in the destination. Moreover, it should be mentioned that business tourist arrivals to Uzbekistan increased from 64, 000 in 1998 to 73, 000 in 2002 (Source: WTO statistics). 1.2 Overall question of the research The research question of this paper: Is there a future for Incentive Travels in Uzbekistan? 11 1.3 Hypothesis The present research has developed the hypothesis: the development of incentive travels in Uzbekistan depends on the degree of political stability of the destination, level of economic development, attraction power and perception (image) of the destination. 1.4 Objectives of the research The core objective of the research is to investigate the potential of Uzbekistan for future development of incentive travels. The specific objectives are as follows: to discuss the Silk Road concept and its importance for future tourism development in Uzbekistan to introduce the concept of incentive travel, the basic criteria for choosing an incentive destination and current trends in the incentive tourism market to analyze the macro-environment of the destination to evaluate principle tourism resources the destination can offer for the development of incentive travels to study the perception (image) of the destination he ld by the European incentive intermediaries on the example of British ITOs to identify opportunities and shortcomings for the development of incentive product in the country 12 1.5 Rationale for investigation Incentive travel is an unfamiliar and not developed type of tourism in Uzbekistan. The present research will help to highlight the potential of the country and identify the opportunities and shortcomings for future development of incentive product in the destination. The findings of the present research may be helpful to incentive planners and destination management companies (DMC). 1.6 Structure of the dissertation The paper consists of the following chapters: In the Literature Review Chapter the theories and models supporting the present research are discussed. Methodology Chapter presents the approach taken to answer the research question of the paper, methods used to gather the data relevant to the

present research and the discussion of major problems in obtaining data. In the Data Presentation and Analysis Chapter the collected data relevant to the subject of the paper are analyzed. In the Conclusion Chapter the findings and main conclusions of the paper are summarized. 13

II CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW

14 The author has reviewed the available literature relevant to the problem. In this chapter the Silk Road concept is discussed in order to explain the reasons for tourism existence and development in Uzbekistan. The concept of incentive travel, basic criteria for choosing an incentive destination and current trends in incentive tourism market are introduced in order to give the insight of this type of business tourism. In order to investigate the potential of Uzbekistan for the development of incentive travels the following models and theories are described: PEST model -to analyze the macro-environment of the destination and factors influencing the demand in the destination Destination tourism resources base- to evaluate the basic components of the destination, types of resources and attractions. Image Formation theory and Hierarchy of Effects model - to measure the perception of the destination and attitude held by the European incentive intermediaries on the example of the British ITOs. SWOT analysis- to summarize key findings of PEST analysis and tourism resources analysis. 15 2.1 Silk Road concept The Silk Road was born in the second half of the II century BC when the Chinese diplomat and traveler Chjan Tsyan discovered the countries of Central Asia for the Chinese people. Thus, the two parts of the world, China and Rome, were connected and the biggest trade networking system started its life and development. It was named Silk Road by reason of transporting the silk textile, silk cloth and silk products from China to Western countries along it. The phrase Silk Road (Seidenstrassen) was first introduced in the scientific circles in the XIXth century by the German geographer Ferdinand von Richthofen in his treatise China. The Silk Road passed through the centers of the Central Asia - Samarkand, Bukhara, Marghilan, Shakhrisabz, Andijan which are the main cities of Uzbekistan. This region was the meeting-point of ancient civilizations, cross-road of main exporting trade routes coming from China to India and Europe (see Appendix III: Map of Silk Road countries) The silk was a small part of the goods carried on the Silk Road. Gold, textiles, saffron, cucumbers, pomegranates, melons, wine and colored glass were all carried into China along. From the East came not only ceramics, spices and bronze but also paper, printing and gunpowder. The merchants were traveling along the Silk Road in caravans of camels crossing the worlds greatest deserts and mountains. The Silk Road was not only a single physical route, but a system of trade links

connecting China and Europe. It was important in two main ways. First of all, as a specific form of business travel, it stimulated the growth of ancient travel infrastructure including accommodation (the caravanserai), transport services 16 (camel traders) and guides. Secondly, it was like an ancient inter-communicative highway that enabled people of different cultures to meet and exchange ideas, philosophy, religious doctrines and then to carry new views and impressions to their home countries1. With the independence of five Central Asian republics in 1991 and with idea to revive Silk Road for cultural exchange and tourism, WTO decided to create a longterm tourism project that would promote Silk Road tourism concept and create the world awareness of the Silk Road tourist destinations. This project united 24 countries related to the Silk Road existence in the past and created Silk Road historical brand for the Central Asian destinations 2. Uzbekistans competitive differentiation from the other Silk Road countries is obvious as it is the core country of the Silk Road. Its advantage is a favorable location at the cross-roads of Europe and Asia. Its ancient cities of Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva represent cultural and historical heritage of the Silk Road: over 6000 architectural monuments have been included into the heritage list of UNESCO. All these facts help to market the destination and create the unique destination proposition.
1 Sadullaev, 2 World

A.S., (2002) History of Uzbekistan. Great Silk Road. Pg 206-212, Tashkent Tourism Organisation , WTO Silk Road Project available from http://www.worldtourism. org/projects/silkroad/silkroad.html

17 2.2 Concept of incentive travel Definition Society of Incentive & Travel Executives (SITE) defines incentive trave l as a global management tool that uses an exceptional travel experience to motivate and/or recognize participants for increased levels of performance in support of organizational goals. Davidson R. and Cope B. in their book Business Travel give the concept of incentive travel and describe the main actors of this type of business tourism. Accor ding to the authors, incentive travel is the form of business tourism which involves employees of industry companies into group travel with or without their spouses/partners. It is rewarded as a prize and paid for by the travelers employer with the aim to encourage employees to meet business objectives. This is a type of travel which is composed of exotic and exclusive trips offering special entertainment and events. Buyers The US incentive travel market is the largest one in the world, as the origin of incentive travel is attributed to the United States. Europe is the second largest incentive travel market which is generated by the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy. Scandinavian countries, Austria, Belgium and Spain are developing as outbound incentive travel generators. However, the differences are pointed out between these incentive destinations in the way of use of incentive travel. Incentive travel industries in France, Italy and Germany are focused on their own domestic destinations, while the UK domestic market is small and is not considered as an

18 appropriate destination for incentive programmes. The consumers of incentive travel are mainly industry sectors (see Table 1) Table 1 Incentive Travel buyers by sector Information technology 87% Automobile 64% Financial-service insurance 64% Pharmaceutical 60% Telecommunications 58% Financial services-other 54% Food, drink and tobacco 32% Manufacturing 24% Manufacturing-fast-moving consumer goods 24% Electronics 20% Retail 10% Utilities 5% Internet 5% Flooring 5% Building industries 5% Distribution 5% Recruitment 5% Petrochemical 5% Source: Conference & Incentive Travel, February 2002 Incentive travel organizers (ITOs) Incentive travel programmes are constructed by ITOs which can be represented by incentive travel agencies, incentive travel companies and incentive travel houses. The process of constructing and implementing an incentive programme requires a long-term planning and involvement in the activities like: Analysis of the clients business and the types of travel rewards most appropriate to their company 19 Establishment of short-list of possible destinations with the client which is based on employees aspirations, budget and where a companys recent incentives were held Determination of the needs and desires of employees as well as their spouses or partners Promotional campaign within the company to advertise the competition and the prize Monitoring employees performance and periodically sending them the reminders of the desirability of the prize Choosing and nominating the winners Designing incentive trips ITOs have to provide the participants with the travel experience which sur prises, delights and impresses. This makes incentive trip different from general holiday travel. It has to be unique. Itineraries should be full of surprises and special events. It has to provide the participants with the opportunity to experience extraor dinary

activities. The participants should have the impression that they have had privileged access to exclusive places and people. The activities and sports should be included as a way of making the trip more memorable and dynamic. Incentive trip involves ITOs in negotiation and arrangements concerning organization of transport, accommodation, entertainment and activities. With this concern incentive travel agencies tend to work in partnership with Destination Management Companies (DMC) who use their local knowledge and contacts to turn the incentive travel agencys ideas into reality. 20 Suppliers Incentive travel makes use of the services and facilities of each sector of the tourism industry, including accommodation, transport, tourist attractions and recreational resources. It is a type of travel which requires luxury and comfort as well as an impeccable standard of services and attention to detail. Accommodation has to be of the highest standard, offering leisure facilities, good supply of restaurants and bars and conference facilities. Accessibility is important as well as the destination should be reached by as many means of transport as possible. Ease of traveling around the destination is also essential. Transport element is not simply the means of getting to the destination but it is very often a part of the incentive experience itself. The type of transportation mostly used for this reason are coaches, trams, cars, jeeps, ferries, boats branded with the company logo, on-board entertainment, personalized welcome messages as well as gifts as a souvenir of the trip. Attractions and activities should be as varied and as distinctive as possible 3. Destinations The other important supply side elements in the incentive market are the destinations that are used for trips of this kind. Davidson R. in his book Travel and Tourism in Europe speaks about the results of the Travel and Tourism Intelligence survey on how destinations for incentive travel programmes are selected4. According to this survey, for the European market the determinants in the decision process are ranked as follows:
3 Davidson, R., and Cope, B., (2003) Business Travel. Harlow, Pearson Education Limited, Incentive

Travel pp 158-189 4 Davidson, R., (1998) Travel and Tourism in Europe. USA, Addison Wesley Longman LTD, Incentive Travel pp 188-194

21 Budget and cost consideration - 34 % of respondents Exotic destinations - 8% Availability of sports and recreational facilities- 6% Climate- 5% Ease of transport-5% American incentive experts Judie Carrol, Jim Gossett and Steve OMalley in their article Choosing a destination are discussing the main criteria incentive destination must fulfill. They put more emphasis on the positive image (name recognition) of the destination that means a lot when stimulating participants interest. Furthermore, they think that less-known destinations may be more difficult to sell to decisionmakers and participants, but they can help create unique motivational experiences. Finally, they advise to incentive planners to take into consideration the following

aspects of incentive destinations: Safety: since incentive business is sensitive type of business, safety is especially important for incentive groups, which usually represent the most valuable human capital possessed by company. Incentive planners must determine that their itineraries are safe. Accessibility: incentive destination should be accessible to groups , i.e. convenient and easy to reach. The first consideration is transportation. If the group is traveling by ground, it is advisory to identify primary and secondary routes to the site. If incentive participants are traveling by air, it is essential to check to make sure several carriers serve the destination, and create backup plans for getting participants home in case of an emergency. Also it is important to consider the transportation infrastructure within the incentive 22 destination and to check the condition of local roads and make sure there are backup transportation options ava ilable. It is necessary to find out the true distance between the airport and the hotel, and to take into consideration that weather has great influence on accessibility and transportation. Destination details: any destination should have a well-developed travel infrastructure: a competitive selection of air carriers, hotels, ground transportation companies with high-quality service. There should be enough variety in order to construct an effective incentive programme like natural attractions ( beautiful landscapes, natural parks), nightlife (a world-class selection of restaurants, cafes and bars, theatre and musical performances), historical attractions (museums, historic sites, forts, castles), local culture (specific cuisines, traditional music, dancing or art, special events like festivals which count as valuable cultural selling points), sports (golf , tennis, skiing, diving, boating and hiking) 5 Current trends in incentive travel market The current trends in incentive tourism are found as follows: the European incentive market is growing and expanding to more adventurous and less-known destinations; many European award winners have been already traveling within the European continent and are likely to be attracted to more unusual destinations offering new experiences and engagement in new activities6; industry companies are looking for
5 Carrol,

J., Gossett, J., and OMalley, S., (2004) Choosing a destination. Incentive. New York: 2004. pg.36 6 Davidson, R., (1998) Travel and Tourism in Europe. USA, Addison Wesley Longman LTD

23 lower-cost alternatives7; Asia is becoming the hot spot for incentives and meetings with its top destinations like China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore8.
7 Davidson, 8 Welsh

R., (1994) Business Travel. England, Longman Incentive Travel pp. 69-86 Sara J., (2004) Enter the Dragon. Successful Meetings, Dec.2004, Vol. 53 Issue 13, p41, 3p,

8c

24 2.3 The macro-environment of the destination -PEST model Swarbrooke J. and Horner S. in their book Business travel and Tourism talk about the importance of macro-environment of business travel and external factors

influencing the demand9. The macro-environment comprises factors which have great influence on the product development and the destination as a whole. These factors exist at a national or global level. The main elements of the microenvironment are presented in the PEST model which categorizes the environmental influences into four main types: Political Economical Social Technological The scope of PEST analysis is outlined in the Figure 1. John Tribe 10 defines the political environment as a part of the macro environment which is under the direct control of the government. Government has direct control over legislation and regulation, economic policy, government-owned businesses, government international policy. Another important aspect of the political environment is political stability. The key factors in the economic environment are economic growth which is defined as the increase in real output per capita of a country and measured by Gross Domestic Product (GDP); consumers expenditure which is determined by income level; investment expenditure which is expenditure on capital goods such as hotel construction; exchange rates, the value of a countrys currency in terms of other
9 Swarbrooke,

J., and Horner, S., (2002) Business Travel and Tourism. Great Britain, The Bath Press The macro-environment of business travel and tourism pp 67-74 10 Tribe, J., (1997) Corporate Strategy for Tourism. London, International Thomson Business Press. Analysing the external environme nt for tourism organizations: PEST pp 54-79

25 currencies; taxation, including taxes on income, spending and profits; inflation, the change in the general level of prices; unemployment, the number of people without jobs. Factors in the social environment include the size and structure of the population, social class and attitudes and values, social concerns. Technological environment can offer changes in information technology, communications development, development of the Internet means, and technological change in transportation. PEST analysis provides a framework to analyze opportunities and threats and to plan a future scenario. Figure 1. PEST Analysis factors
Source: Swarbrooke, J., and Horner, S., (2002) Business Travel and Tourism. Great Britain, The Bath Press The macro-environment of business travel and tourism p. 68 ECONOMIC FACTORS The state of economies Interest rates Currency exchange rates Prices, inflation The way in which wealth is distributed in the society Globalisation Industry ownership (vertical and horizontal integration) SOCIAL FACTORS Demographic change Social concerns such as environmental issues Lifestyle developments

TECHNOLOGICAL FACTORS Product technologies Communication technologies Operational technologies

PEST Analysis
POLITICAL FACTORS Legislation and regulation Government policies on tourism Taxation systems Co-operation between governments Government grants and fiscal incentives Political stability: civil disorder, strikes and war

26 2.4 Destination Tourism Resource Base Tourism resources are the features which attract tourists into the destination. They represent the supply side which needs to be matched with the market demand to develop a certain tourist product. When planning the development of the tourist product, the critical evaluation of tourism resources the destination can offer is an important step. It helps to identify product weaknesses and strengths , its uniqueness and tourist appeal. Godfrey K. and Clarke J. categorize tourism resources into11: Natural Cultural Events Activities Services Natural resources include aspects of flora and fauna, landscape, climate and water. They often form a central element of a destinations tourism appeal and in some locations they may be the most important destinations features. Cultural resources include elements of history such as old buildings and ruins, castles, forts and historic homes; elements of historical interpretation such as museums, heritage sites. Cultural resources reflect certain aspects of current society; include religious settings, elements of nationality, the life and lifestyle of a particular indigenous culture and society. Event resources include festivals, tournaments, street carna vals, and parades, competitions in sport, recreation, music or arts. These events can help to form an
11 Godfrey,

K., and Clarke, J., (2000) The tourism development handbook. A practical approach to planning and marketing. London, Kerry Godfrey and Jackie Clarke. What have we got? Understanding tourism resources. pp 64-85

27 image of the destination. Events also encompass high-profile but less frequent activities, such as trade shows, business conventions and national and international sporting events. Activity resources include purpose-built tourist/leisure attractions and facilities such

as theme parks and entertainment centers, zoos, aquariums, gardens. In terms of sport and recreation, activity resources may range from ski hills, golf-courses and sportstadiums to cycle routes or natural panoramic view points. They may also include conference centers and meetings rooms, art and craft galleries, gift shops, theatres and cinemas. Service resources include accommodation and catering, transport, hospitality and general community services. Infrastructure is also important as it affects the accessibility to the destination. An assessment of tourism resources in the destination is done on the basis of their overall quality, uniqueness and appeal. Resource quality is not only customer service but it includes conservation and management. Resource uniqueness is the sense of place, its character, what makes it different from the other places. Resource appeal is a drawing power of each destinations feature. 28 2.5 Image Formation Theory and Hierarchy of Effects model Czilla Jandala, the Hungarian researcher, in her report Destination image development-tools and techniques12 states: The choice between tourism destinations is determined by the picture that the potential tourist/visitor holds on the country, the region, the tourism product and/or the tourist companyin the choice of tourism destination the image plays an important role. People hold perceptions of different destinations and these perceptions become key factor of selection (p.341-342). There exist various definitions of the image. The World Tourism Organisation (WTO) gives the following definition of image: Image is comprised of the ideas or conceptions held individually or collectively of the destinations under investigation. Image may comprise both cognitive and evaluative components. Gartner cited in Jandala differs three main image components13: cognitive, image of the destination based on the information which is known or believed to be true; affective (feelings), based on the evaluation of the object and ones motivation; and conative which is behavior, intention and preferences. Reich further explains the relationship between these components14: beliefs about the destination are first developed in the cognitive stage where they are evaluated for their positive, negative or neutral impact on the individual; the affective component is related to the attitude of the individual toward the object; the conative stage is the behavioral result of the cognitive and affective stages. Howie divided the image into two types: organic and induced15. An organic image is created through personal visitation or through the information derived from conversations with friends, family or acquaintances.
12 Jandala,

S., (1998) Destination image development-tools and techniques. International Association of Scientific Experts in Tourism Vol. 40, Suisse pg 341-342 13 Jandala, S., (1998) Destination image development-tools and techniques. International Association of Scientific Experts in Tourism Vol. 40, Suisse pg 341-342 14 Reich, A.Z., (1999) Positioning of Tourist Destinations. USA, Sagamore Publishing. Positioning and image. The image construct. p.20 15 Howie, F., (2003) Managing the tourist destination. London, YHT Ltd. Image theory. pp103-112

29 Induced image is the result of advertising in newspapers and magazines, tourist brochures, television. In order to measure the consumer attitude toward a particular tourist product, it is

essential to identify the consumers awareness of this product and his beliefs about it. To explain this relationship Reich used hierarchy of effect model to show the successive stages a consumer will progress through before a purchase is made (see Figure 2). Figure 2 Hierarchy of effects model Conative Affective Cognitive
Source: Reich, A.Z., (1999) Positioning of Tourist Destinations. USA, Sagamore Publishing. Positioning and image. p.31

Purchase Purchase intention Beliefs/Knowledge Attitude Aware Unaware 30 Unaware - at some point all consumers are unaware of certain product options Aware - they learn of various options through personal and non-personal communication channels Beliefs/knowledge - from personal and non-personal communication channels consumers collect knowledge that can be used to form beliefs about the product Attitude - the consumers begin organizing their beliefs about the product and developing attitude towards it. Positive attitude leads to a preference. Purchase intention - intention is based on the attitude which can motivate the consumer to make a purchase Purchase - if the consumers attitude is positive, the intention is high and the consumer is motivated, a purchase will be made. 31 2.6 SWOT analysis SWOT analysis is an acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. It is an analytical tool for summarizing the results of the various types of analyses. The strengths and weaknesses are based on the internal analysis and the opportunities and threats are based on analysis of the external environment. The purpose of SWOT analysis is to identify the situational position and to provide a platform for planning for the future. The SWOT is presented in a table 16 (see Figure 3). Figure 3. SWOT Internal Strengths Weaknesses External Opportunities Threats
Source: Evans, N., Campbell, D., and Stonehouse, G., (2003) Strategic Management for Travel and Tourism, Oxford, Butterworth-Heinemann. SWOT Analysis p.198 16 Evans, N., Campbell, D., and Stonehouse, G., (2003) Strategic Management for Travel and Tourism, Oxford, Butterworth-Heinemann. SWOT Analysis pp 196-201

32 This chapter has concentrated on discussing the concepts, theories and models which

will help to highlight the research problem from different perspectives. The Silk Road concept gives the understanding of the historical and cultural roots of Uzbekistan and existing advantages and opportunities for tourism development in the destination. The concept of incentive travel includes the definition of this specific type of business tourism, the nature of incentive buyers demand, the role of ITOs and Suppliers in meeting the needs and expectations of incentive travelers and basic criteria for choosing an incentive destination. The current trends highlight the present demand and priorities in the European incentive travel market. PEST model or the analysis of the macro-environment of the destination gives a total picture of the external factors which might influence on the demand and development of a future tourist product in the destination. Destination tourism resource base encompasses different tourist attractions , such as natural and cultural attractions, event resources, activity and service resources, available in the destination to draw visitors in. Image formation theory and Hierarchy of Effects model explains how the image about the destination is formed and how the purchase decision is made in the minds of customers/tourists. SWOT analysis summarizes the results of different types of analyses. Different models of analysis have been used in the present study in order to examine the overall research question from the following perspectives: external opportunities and threats for the destination; internal potential of tourism resources; destination image (perception); strengths and weaknesses of the destination. The methods used to collect the data for different analyses will be presented in the next chapter. Both primary and secondary data have been used for the analyses. 33

III CHAPTER METHODOLOGY

34 3.1 Secondary research The secondary data interpreted in this paper have been collected from Uzbektourism National Company, WTO Silk Road office in Samarkand and Internet. One of the difficulties in obtaining secondary data from Uzbektourism National Company was the lack of reliable and readily available information on the characteristics of the existing tourism market in Uzbekistan. The quality of general information about Uzbekistan available in the Internet was found doubtful and biased. The data used for analyses have been taken from the reports and marketing researches on Uzbekistans tourism strengths and weaknesses from supply perspective carried out and written by the local and foreign tourism experts: 1. Tourism Infrastructure Market of Uzbekistan by Murod Madjidov U.S. Foreign Commercial Service. Report date: December 20, 2003. This report gives an idea about Uzbek tourism infrastructure market and existing opportunities. 2. Uzbekistan, a great potential to be unlocked. Recommendations for an enhanced tourism strategy in Uzbekistan by the Tourism & Hospitality Industry Working Group, American Chamber of Commerce in Uzbekistan. Discussion paper: July 9, 2003. In this document the barriers in tourism sector have been outlined and recommendations were put forward.

3. Central Asia: Problems and Perspectives of International Tourism by Slavomir Horak Institute of International Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University Prague. Research conducted in 1999-2003. Analysis of contemporary tourism possibilities in Central Asia is given in this paper. 35 4. Japanese on Holidays Abroad and Tourism in Uzbekistan by Shima Yukio, JICA expert. Report date: December 03, 2002. In this report the current situation and future perspectives of tourism in Uzbekistan are highlighted. 5. Sustainable Tourism Development in Uzbekistan - Action Plan. Project realized in co-operation with tourism experts and researchers from UNO, WTO and National Company Uzbektourism. Report date: September 22, 1997. In this document 3 year marketing programme for tourism development in Uzbekistan is presented. 3.2 Primary research The aim of the primary research was to find out the perception of Uzbekistan held by the European incentive intermediaries on the example of the British ITOs. The data have been collected through small sample survey which was aimed to discover the British ITOs awareness, familiarity and level of interest with Uzbekistan and their perception of the country as an incentive destination. The survey targeted London based incentive event organizing companies. Thirty-two companies were approached. Contacted companies are the members of Incentive Travel & Meetings Association (ITMA) which is the UK-based trade association for organizations that provide business events including meetings and travel incentives. The instrument of the research was the questionnaire which has been mailed electronically (see Appendix IV: Questionnaire). The questionnaire was developed following a review of the related literature and consisted of 7 questions including 3 36 open questions in order to make the respondents describe the feelings and image they have had about Uzbekistan. It was sent together with the informative letter followed by a reminder one week later. In total 32 ITOs were contacted, 10 replied, 8 questionnaires were completed. The results of the survey have been summarized by means of descriptive statistics and the conclusion is limited to the responses obtained. The distribution of questionnaires via e-mail had a number of advantages and disadvantages: Advantages Disadvantages E-mail survey is inexpensive and not time-consuming. The sample is reached quickly The respondents can complete the questionnaires on their own. Low response rate Incomplete questionnaires Misunderstanding of questions Not sure that the right person

filled in the questionnaire According to the authors impression, the low response rate (25%) could be explained by insufficient interest of respondents in the subject of the survey. The next chapter will present the interpretation of secondary data and the results of the primary research. 37

IV CHAPTER DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS

38 In this chapter the analysis of collected data relevant to the subject of the research is presented. Operating with facts the author of the paper first investigated what environmental factors might influence the destination and what opportunities and threats for the incentive product development in the destination are coming out. Using data from previous researches and studies on tourism infrastructure market and tourism potential of Uzbekistan, the author evaluated principal tourism resources of the destination from three perspectives: resource uniqueness, resource quality and resource appeal. Then, the results of the survey conducted in the British incentive tourism market with the aim to discover the interest with Uzbekistan as an incentive destination are presented. Key findings of the PEST analysis, tourism resource analysis and survey are summarized in the SWOT table. 39 4.1. PEST analysis 4.1.1 Political factors Geopolitical situation of Uzbekistan is characterized by the proximity of unstable countries such as Afghanistan in the south and Tadjikistan in the southeast (see Appendix II: Map of Uzbekistan) which are highlighted by mass media as the regions of civil wars, narcotics trafficking, terrorist acts and Islamic fundamentalism. The tourists motivation to come to Uzbekistan might be greatly influenced by the negative image of these regions which are perceived as risk zones. Political situation in Uzbekistan is defined as stable. However, the political regime in the country, which is found undemocratic and totalitarian in the western minds, provokes the protests of the local population and causes troubles in some regions of the country. These troubles destabilize the political situation in the country and may cause the decrease in tourists flow to the destination as in the recent case of Andijan event (the liberation of political prisoners) on May 13th, 2005 in Ferghana valley, one of the tourist visiting centers. Many European tourists still keep in their minds the political image of Uzbekistan as one of the republics of the former Soviet Union. This image is rather unfavorable for the successful promotion of the destination as it dominates over the image of Uzbekistan as a Silk Road country. Phenomenon of corruption is a social vice which creates a negative image of the country as well and is considered to be a main obstacle for development and progress. Tourism is a very profitable sector of the local economy and corruption is characterized by overpricing of tourist services. 40

Visa and entrance process is found difficult and complicated. The present entry requirements to Uzbekistan are too restrictive for international travelers. 4.1.2 Economical factors Uzbekistan is still developing country and is in the process of transition to the free market economy. Great economical potential is found in Uzbekistan, however, there exist economic hardships like inflation, unemployment, currency convertibility restrictions which slow down the overall economic growth. In early 2004 Uzbek ministry reported on stable economic growth and low inflation in Uzbekistan. It was achieved by the creation of favorable macroeconomic environment for the entrepreneurship, the reformation in the economy and the implementation of investment projects. To stimulate the tourism development in the country, favorable conditions were created for investment projects in tourism sector, namely 3 years tax exemption for companies working in the Silk Road cities and 5 years profit repatriation tax exemption for joint ventures. Investment projects with foreign companies are aimed at renovation of material and technical base, improvement of tourism infrastructure and overall quality of tourist destination. Unification of the exchange rates is a positive development in the economy. Before 2004 the parallel exchange rate, official and black, existed in the country leaving tourists with the impression that they are being short-changed and getting bad value for money. Prices and salaries are found very low by Western standards. This may be the opportunity to create a relatively cheap tourist product in the destination. 41 4.1.3 Socio-cultural factors Changes in demand and values have been identified in global tourism and, particularly, in incentive tourism. On the global level international travelers are seeking undiscovered and authentic experiences; there is a growth in long-haul traffic. When talking about incentive tourism it was mentioned above that European incentive market is growing and expanding to more adventurous and less-known destinations; many European award winners have been already traveling within the European continent and are likely to be attracted to more unusual destinations offering new experiences and engagement in new activities; industry companies are looking for lower-cost alternatives; Asia is becoming the hot spot for incentives and meetings with its top destinations like China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore. There occurred as well changes in tourists attitudes to the physical environment. Tourists are becoming environmentally more sensitive and prefer traveling to ecologically save (healthy) destinations. However, in Uzbekistan, there is an ecological problem in the Aral Sea region in the north-western part of the country (see Appendix II- Map of Uzbekistan) which caused the environmental pollution in this area what affected the overall image of Uzbekistan as environmentally polluted country. As a social factor it is also important to consider the attitude of local people to foreign visitors in the destination. Uzbek people are found very friendly and hospitable towards the tourists, which is explained by a long tradition of receiving guests and foreigners.

42 4.1.4 Technological Technological development in Uzbekistan is limited to the implementation of high speed Internet, phone and mobile connections, international dialing. Technological change in transportation is found in the improvement of aircrafts and railway system. 4.1.5 External opportunities and threats for the development of incentive product in Uzbekistan The following opportunities for the development of incentive product in Uzbekistan were identified: New trends in global tourism and incentive market represent the opportunity for Uzbekistan to become one of the destinations for incentive programme. Its a long haul destination which is rather unknown for international travelers and could provide new experiences, aspirations and spirit of adventures for award winners. Taking into consideration that incentive travelers flows to Asian countries are increasing and the fact that Asia is becoming a hot spot for incentive and meetings, Uzbekistan could promote itself as a potential incentive destination belonging to Asian region and benefiting from the favorable location between East and West. Stable economic growth in Uzbekistan could stimulate the demand for business travel in the destination in the futur e. Successful development of foreign investment projects in tourism sector aimed at renovation of material and technical base and improvement of travel infrastructure has a favorable impact on the overall quality of 43 the destination. The opportunities might be found in providing international standards accommodation, good road and travel infrastructure. Technological improvement of telecommunication services creates the opportunity for the destination to integrate fully into the global telecommunication system which is an important factor for business travelers. Since in the selection process of incentive destination one of the most important determinants is budget and cost consideration, with low level prices a relatively cheap incentive product can be created in Uzbekistan. This factor could be attractive both for incentive buyers (industry companies) and incentive travel organizers. The factors which represent threats for the development of incentive product in the destination are found as follows: Uzbekistan suffers from political instability. Politically unstable destinations are perceived as unsafe destinations. Since incentive tourism is rather sensitive type of tourism and requires safety in the destination, this factor represents a potential threat for incentive product development in Uzbekistan. Neighborhood with politically unstable countries like Afghanistan and Tadjikistan, corruption, image of the former Soviet Union republic and ecological problem of the Aral sea region create overall unfavorable image of Uzbekistan which makes it difficult to promote the country as an incentive destination. Popularity with Asian incentive destinations is a competitive threat for Uzbekistan. Asian countries like China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore are 44 attractive alternatives and offer exciting experiences as well as high quality service.

Incentive travel industry in these countries is in its growth and overall image of the destinations is very positive, while Uzbekistan is unknown destination having unfavorably formed image and not developed incentive travel industry. Visa and entrance process is found complicated in Uzbekistan. This factor creates an obstacle for incentive travel groups to come easily to the destination and place Uzbekistan at a disadvantage with its competitor incentive destinations. 45 4.2 Evaluation of tourism resources of Uzbekistan 4.2.1 Natural resources The uniqueness and drawing power of natural resources of Uzbekistan lies in the diversity of landscapes. Different landscapes can be found in Uzbekistan, such as mountains, valleys, oases, steppes and deserts. Such a variety of natural areas creates opportunities to develop a number of specialist tourism products including hunting, fishing, mountain trekking, camel riding, horse riding, skiing, ecological tours etc. Water resources are not in abundance in the destination and a few of them are utilized for tourism activities. The Aral Sea, Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers, mineral springs, mountain lakes and rivers are the main water sources in the country. Nowadays the shrinking of the Aral Sea in the northern part of Uzbekistan and pollution of nearby territories is a major ecological problem resulted from the diverting the waters of two big rivers into canals and waterways for irrigation purposes. With this concern the Aral Sea region is considered to be unsuitable for tourism activities. Another aspect of the natural resources is climate, which is an important consideration in the destination as it affects the seasonality of the tourist product. Dry climate with contrasting and quick transition from the unstable winter to the warm rainy spring, from damp, warm and short spring to the dry summer, is typical of Uzbekistan. Very often autumn begins with sharp fluctuation of temperature, light frosts, rains, sometimes followed by snow for a short period of time. The transition from autumn to winter is sharp. Winters are very unstable; often light frosts and hard frosts are followed by intensive and lasting thaws. The temperature in winter goes 46 down to - 20C-25C (maximum), in summer the temperature goes up to +37C ( maximum +45C - +47C).. The spring and autumn time is the most suitable for visiting Uzbekistan because of the favorable climate conditions. From the destination attractiveness perspective these seasonal periods give more remarkable impressions to visitors providing them with seeing the most beautiful sceneries, such as spring blossoms and autumn foliages. Hot and dry summer makes Uzbekistan not suitable for summer holidays. The winter time is boring and not spectacular to travel in the destination. 4.2.2 Cultural resources Cultural resources are in abundance in Uzbekistan and a major tourism appeal of the destination. They include historical buildings, museums and heritage sites, national art and craft works, folklore and local traditions. Cultural and historical heritage of Uzbekistan is represented mainly by historical cities of Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva founded over 2 500 years ago. They preserve the samples of Islamic architecture of the IX-XIXth centuries such as madrassahs (Islamic seminaries),

mosques (Islamic churches), minarets (tall slender spire forming part of a mosque, with a balcony from which people are called to prayer by a muezzin) and mausoleums. Over 6000 architectural monuments of Uzbekistan have been included into the world heritage list of UNESCO. Slight distance between the main historical cities makes them suitable for round guided tours. Each city has its own style and character. Samarkand is presented as the crossroad, important trading center of the Silk Road and the capital of the former empire of Tamerlane, one of the conquerors of the 47 Central Asian region. The principal tourist attractions include the Registan Square which is the center of the historical city where three huge madrassahs built between the 15th and 17th centuries, dominate the area; the Bibi Khanym Mosque, a testimony to Tamerlanes love for his wife; Gur-Emir mausoleum, the family crypt of Tamerlane and his descendants; the Shah-i-Zinda, a collection of the graves of some of Samarkands dignitaries; the Observatory of Ulug Beg, Tamerlanes grandson, which was the most advanced astronomical observatory of its day. Bukhara West of Samarkand, Bukhara was once a center of learning renowned throughout the Islamic world. In Bukhara, there are more than 350 mosques and 100 religious colleges. The center of historical Bukhara is the Shakristan, which contains the Ark, or palace complex of the Emirs (Kings). Near the gatehouse is the Zindan or jail of the Emirs, which has a display of some of the torture methods employed by the Emirs against their enemies. Not far from the Ark, the 47m- (154ft-) high Kalyan Minaret, or tower of death, was built in 1127. Other sites of interest in Bukhara include the Kalyan Mosque, which is open to non-Muslims, the Ismail Samani Mausoleum, the Ulug Beg Madrasa the oldest in Central Asia, Sitora-i-MokhiKhossa, a country side residence of Bukharian Emirs. Khiva Khiva, northeast of Bukhara, is younger and better preserved than Samarkand and Bukhara. The city still lies within the original city walls, and has changed little since the 18th century. Part of its attraction is its completeness; although it has been turned into a museum town and is hardly inhabited. 48 Arts and crafts of Uzbekistan are also important element s of cultural resources which reflect the culture, lifestyle, customs and traditions of local people. Manufacturing of multicolored ceramics, the art of jewelry, metal chasing and engraving, ornamental embroidery and silk production, carpet weaving, wood carving and painting, art of miniature and calligraphy are traditional crafts which have been revived since ancient times. Arts and crafts articles are exhibited in the museums and workshops, many of them are commercialized in the souvenir and gift shops in the main tourist regions of the destination. 4.2.3 Event resources Entertainment industry is not well-developed in Uzbekistan and limited to discos and night clubs. Big scaled events are arranged only on public holidays. The most significant ones of national scale are the Independence Day, on the 1st of September, which is celebrated with the light and sound show followed by the fireworks in the

central place of Tashkent (capital of Uzbekistan) ; Navruz Day, the celebration of a Muslim New Year and spring arrival, on the 21st of March, which is accompanied by feasts, traditional music performances and shows in the streets all over Uzbekistan. These eve nts could be of enough interest to supplement visitor activities while in the destination. There is another remarkable event in Uzbekistan which could be useful as a tourism resource to draw visitors in. Once in two years the International Musical Festival Oriental Melodies takes place in Samarkand at the end of summer which attracts the participants from all over the world, both from Western and Eastern countries. The aim of this festival is to demonstrate the folklore music, culture and traditions of different peoples of the World. The event is built up in the 49 central historical place of Samarkand, the Registan square, and involves the participation both of non-local and local people. 4.2.4 Activity resources Activity resources of Uzbekistan can be divided into the following categories: Recreational activities include Golf Course in the Tashkent Lakeside Golf Club which is the first International Championship Golf Course in Central Asia. The course is located outside of Tashkent within approximately 20 minutes drive from the center of the city. Skiing and snowboarding in Uzbekistan are also possible in the mountain resorts of the Chimgan region, the Western Tyan Shan Mountains. However, the infrastructure for these types of activities is currently under development and cannot be fully utilized Hunting and fishing facilities are offered by Hunting Board and Administration of State Reserves and National Parks of Uzbekistan which supervises 6 State-forest-hunting grounds in the country. Horse and camel riding are possible in the valleys and desert areas of Uzbekistan and very popular activities among cultural and adventure tourists. Plenty of the leisure activities can be found in Tashkent mainly in the theme parks, Botanic and Japanese gardens. Uzbek theatre and circus performances and traditional fashion shows are also attractive activities for tourists. Shopping activities in Uzbekistan are of interest in art and craft galleries and gift shops which can be found in all tourist visiting places. 50 Most of the activity resources of Uzbekistan are concentrated in Tashkent and Tashkent region, while the other regions of the country offer a few of them. 4.2.5 Service resources Accommodation Recent years there was considerably improved the hotel accommodation infrastructure in Uzbekistan. The plenty of the Western-style hotels including hotels belonging to international chains have been erected in the 1996-2003 period around the Silk Road cities The majority of 5* and 4* hotels are located in the business centers of the cities and offer a wide range of services including conference facilities. There exist other types of hotels in Uzbekistan, namely private hotels and bed & breakfast (B&B) facilities designed in the Uzbek traditional style. These hotels are

comfortable and compact and contain no more than 20 rooms. Private hotels and B&B represent a new generation of hotels in Uzbekistan and can be found in the main tourist regions of the destination. In desert regions a special accommodation is provided for adventurous tourists, the so-called yurt- a nomads tent made of felt. It is the traditional abode of the nomads of Central Asia from ancient time to modern days. Yurts were the main Kazakh and Karakalpak dwelling for the desert. Nowadays, this type of accommodation is offered to tourists willing to experience authenticity and spirit of adventures. Camel riding and Kazakh troubadour performances near the fireplace are the way of tourist entertainment in desert regions. . 51 Catering Catering companies are numerous in Uzbekistan and offer both international and local meals. Catering services are provided by hotels, restaurants, bars, cafes, bistros and fast food companies. Local food can be also consumed at tea houses and guest houses. The tea house or choyhona in Uzbekistan is a cornerstone of traditional Uzbek society. It is not only a place for tea drinking but it is also a place for social interaction. Green tea is the drink of hospitality and predominant in Uzbekistan. It is offered first to any guest and there exists a whole ceremony of the preparation, offering and consuming of tea. Tea drinking is accompanied by consuming dried fruits and traditional snacks. Guest houses are also the providers of traditional food. One particularly distinctive feature of guest houses is that the tourists have an opportunity to see local food production techniques or participate in food preparation. Major problems found in catering industry in Uzbekistan are the lack of culinary experience to make the best of good foods and ingredients available in Uzbekistan. Kitchen and storage areas do not often meet the requirements of hygiene. Restaurant service standards are also weak with little evidence of effective, guest focused supervision. Transport Transportation infrastructure was found good in the country. Tashkent airport is the primary arrival point for international visitors to Uzbekistan. Besides, there are 12 regional airports in the regional centers of the country. The airports in Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara and Urgench (near Khiva) have been renovated and now operate with new navigation equipment and passenger terminals. All the airports are managed by Uzbekistan Airways National Air Company. Uzbekistan Air-Lines now provide direct access from Tashkent to Uzbekistans 52 main source markets. Though Uzbekistan is a long-haul destination, it is rather accessible to main European tourism markets due to regular international flights to/from London, Paris, New York, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Istanbul, Moscow, Delhi, Tel Aviv, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Seoul and Beijing. The provision of new Airbus and Boeing aircraft places Uzbekistan in a strong position to attract long haul travellers. In addition to Uzbekistan Airways a number of Western and Asian airlines fulfill flights to Tashkent: British Airways, Air France, Turkish Air, Iran Air, Asiana, Aeroflot and Transaero. The National Railway Company provides passenger rail service. However, the national system of railroads is still under development and modernization. At present the trains operating between Tashkent and Samarkand and Tashkent and Bukhara are found relatively comfortable for international travelers. Road travel is one of the most frequently used ways to travel across Uzbekistan,

though bumpy roads, old buses and exhausting trips between the cities dont impress too much international visitors. When constructing trips around Uzbekistan, the combination of transport means is possible. As there are no regular interregional flights, which is a great disadvantage, the most appropriate way to travel between the historical cities is by coach or autocar. Usually the starting point of the trip is Tashkent followed by Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva. The trip ends up flying from Khiva to Tashkent. The opposite direction is also possible. 4.2.6 Potential of internal tourism resources for the development of incentive product in Uzbekistan Examination of the principle tourism resources of Uzbekistan determined the internal potential of the destination for the development of incentive product. From the natural resources, the local scenery might be considered appealing as its diversity can provide the incentive travelers with plentiful of impressions as well as with the 53 variety of recreational activities. From the climate perspective the best period for the organization of incentive travels can be May and October months. Cultural resources are a major tourism appeal of the destination and can contribute much to providing the incentive travelers with exotic cultural experience. Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva are the principle tourist visiting centers in the destination and incentive events can be built up around historical sights of these ancient cities. Traditional arts and crafts articles can be offered to incentive participants as gifts and souvenirs. Event resources can be used if an incentive programme is planning to be built up around a traditional local event in the destination, for example, Celebration of Navruz Day. However, in this case it is important to consider the scale of local event and involvement of local participants as an incentive experience is supposed to be unique and exclusive. Recreational and leisure activities like, for example, golf course, camel or horse riding, fishing, Uzbek theatre or circus performances, traditional fashion shows can supplement and diversify the incentive programme. The opening up of new international standard hotels, for example, Meridien, Intercontinental, together with the growth of international inward investment could facilitate the development of an incentive travel product in the destination. This will need creative packaging by incoming tour operators who will have to create unique special events for the incentive traveler. Private hotels and B&B are meant to accommodate holiday tourists, but they can be attractive for small and medium size incentive groups as they are comfortable and compact, represent the elements of local culture and traditions and offer unique and authentique opportunity to integrate 54 into the local life. Lodging in yurts is an alternative of accommodation in the desert regions. When constructing incentive programme, this type of accommodation can be taken into consideration, if any event is planned in the desert region. Catering services for incentive partic ipants are better provided by international standard hotels. Regarding the means of travelling in the destination, for incentive travel groups in order to avoid exhausting and time consuming trips the most comfortable way to travel across Uzbekistan is by charter flights between the historical cities and by coach in the cities.

55 4.3. Perception of Uzbekistan held by British ITOs The responses of British ITOs are categorized into the following variables: awareness and familiarity with Uzbe kistan, image of Uzbekistan, perception of Uzbekistan as an incentive destination. The survey showed the following results: Awareness and familiarity with Uzbekistan To find out the awareness, ITOs were asked if they have ever heard of Uzbekistan and if they knew which part of the world does Uzbekistan belong to? From responses obtained 86 % of respondents never heard of Uzbekistan and 14 % of respondents have heard of the country from newspapers, TV and radio. 63 % of respondents indicated that Uzbekistan was located in Asia, 37 % of respondents linked the location of the country to the former Soviet Union territory. Image of Uzbekistan To discover Uzbekistans image held by ITOs, they were asked what associations Uzbekistan had for them and which expressions they would use to characterize the country. A half of respondents indicated that they had no any associations about Uzbekistan; the rest of respondents linked their associations to war in the Central Asian region. The most frequent responses related to the characteristics of the destination were mysterious (5), spice route(4), Tashkent (2), Samarkand(6), former member of the USSR (6), war(4), not economically sound (3), poor(3). Perception of Uzbekistan as an incentive destination To find out the perception of Uzbekistan as an incentive destination, ITOs were asked which features of the destination they would find appealing for incentive 56 award winners and if they would choose Uzbekistan as the destination for incentive programme and why. 96 % of respondents could not indicate any destination features which might be appealing and 4 % of respondents believed that the scenery and the culture might be appealing for incentive travelers, however they stressed that they have had little knowledge of the country in order to make judgments. Almost all respondents replied that they would not choose Uzbekistan as an incentive destination stating the following reasons: 1. Absence of knowledge about the destination (4) 2. Difficult to answer unless visited the country to see it has to offer (1) 3. The destination has no appeal and it wont motivate (2) 4. Poor country offering little in the way of incentive travel (1) The responses obtained from the small sample survey lead to the following conclusion: Uzbekistan is unknown country for British ITOs. Newspapers, TV and radio are the only sources of information which bring knowledge about the country and influence on their opinions about the destination. The image of Uzbekistan is poor and influenced by the Soviet Union brand, political and economical instability of Central Asian region. The Silk Road brand is still weak to place Uzbekistan in the favorable position in the global tourism market. British ITOs do not perceive Uzbekistan as an incentive destination because they have no knowledge about the country and its potential for incentive travels.

57 4.4. SWOT table of key findings Internal Strengths Weaknesses Opening up international standard hotels Good international air transport links Good travel infrastructure Rich urban heritage Friendly and hospitable people Interesting nature Technological improvement in communication Destabilization of the political situation in the destination Slow economic growth Corruption is an obstacle for development and progress Visa and entrance process is complicated Ecological pollution in the Aral sea region Bad roads and old coaches Shortage of internationally acceptable catering facilities External Opportunities Threats Location at the cross-roads of Europe and Asia, and in the past the cross-roads of the Great Silk Road International travelers are seeking undiscovered and authentic experiences There is a growth in long-haul traffic Incentive market is growing Asia is becoming the hot spot for incentives and meetings Neighborhood with politically unstable countries Increased competition from other Asian incentive destinations Unfavorably created image of

the country in the western minds Absence of knowledge about the destination Very low profile of Uzbekistan internationally 58

V CHAPTER CONCLUSION
59 In this chapter the findings of the research are presented and the main conclusions of the paper are summarized. The findings of the present research are based on different types of analysis. The PEST analysis, evaluation of tourism resources base of the destination, the study of the destination image and SWOT analysis have been done in order to answer the overall research question and confirm or reject the hypothesis. The findings are categorized and discussed according to the basic criteria the incentive destination must fulfill. Image (name recognition) Uzbekistan is unknown destination for incentive travelers. The overall destination image is found not positive and not strong enough to stimulate the incentive participants interest. The brand Silk Road was created by WTO for the destination to emphasize its identity and differentiate it from the other competitor destinations. However, the destination brand is not yet internationally recognized and not enough powerful to appeal incentive travelers. Low degree of recognition of Uzbekistan can be seen also as an advantage: the more unknown the destination, the more exotic and attractive it is. Safety Political instability of neighboring Afghanistan and Tadjikistan and destabilization of political situation in Uzbekistan are the main factors which makes the destination unsafe for incentive travelers. These factors exist on the global and national level and therefore cannot be controlled. 60 Accessibility Uzbekistan is accessible to main European incentive markets due to regular international flights between Tashkent and European capitals. The travel infrastructure is relatively good in the destination. Destination details From the detailed examination of tourism resources in Uzbekistan it is evident that the destination possesses the necessary potential for the development of incentive travels. Natural and cultural attractions, variety of activity resources, suitable accommodation and good travel infrastructure are able to contribute to the construction of an effective incentive programme in the destination. Shortcomings are found in the entry requirements to the destination, quality of catering services and quality of roads. From the findings of the paper it is obvious that Uzbekistan possesses the internal

potential for the development of incentive travels. However, the external factors such as political and economical instability of the Central Asian region, poor image of the destination are the main barriers that make this potential unutilized. The hypothesis of the present research have been confirmed as the future of incentive travels in Uzbekistan depends on the degree of political stability of the destination, level of economic development , attraction power and perception (image) of the destination. The incentive-travel industry in Uzbekistan is in its early development stage and needs changes and improvements to be done for its further development. As a priority, the image of Uzbekistan as the Silk Road destination should be promoted 61 more aggressively in consumer media , such as television, radio, newspapers and magazines, etc., highlighting its best features and revealing the potential of the country. Visa requirements have to be relaxed in order to ease any type of tourist arrival to the destination. All suppliers - hotels, restaurants, transportation companies, incentive tour operators, leisure centres - have to be aware of the special requirements of incentive travel and have to perform to the point of perfection. Hotels have to provide special check-in facilities for incentive travel groups, personalized service, souvenirs and gifts. Transport companies have to make sure that they guarantee safety of incentive group transportation. Catering facilities needs further improvement: better range of restaurants, cafes and acceptable bars offering a range of meals and beverages at competitive prices in clean, comfortable and attractive surroundings. Restaurant and cafe operators from other countries and cultures should also be encouraged to develop their own enterprises at main tourist locations. For incentive tour operators, creativity is an important consideration in generating new ideas for incentive travels. The objectives of the present paper have been achieved. However, if the research were to be done again, the different approach to study the image of the destination would have been taken. The face-to-face interviews would have been used as a technique of data collection generating high response rates and providing with complete information. It is suggested as well to carry out the research on the perception of Uzbekistan as an incentive destination in the other European incentive travel markets in order to get different opinions and ideas about the future of incentive travels in the destination. 62

VI BIBLIOGRAPHY
63 Books 1. Ashworth, G., and Goodall, B., (1990) Marketing Tourism Places. London, Routledge. 2. Davidson, R., (1994) Business Travel. Harlow, Longman 3. Evans, N., Campbell, D., and Stonehouse, G., (2003) Strategic Management for Travel and Tourism. Oxford, Butterworth Heinemann 4. Finn, M., Elliot-White, M., and Walton, M., (2000) Tourism & Leisure Research Methods. Harlow, Longman 5. Godfrey, K., and Clarke, J., (2000) The tourism development book. A practical approach to planning and marketing. London, Cassel

6. Howie, F., (2003) Managing the Tourist Destination. London, Continuum 7. Laws, E., (1995) Tourist Destination Management. London, Routledge 8. Morgan, N., Pritchard, A., and Pride, R., (2002) Destination branding. Oxford, Butterworth-Heinemann 9. Pearce. D., (1989) Tourist Development. Harlow, Longman 10. Reich, Z. Allen, (1999) Positioning of Tourist Destinations. Champaign, Sagamore. 11. Swarbrooke, J., and Horner, S., (2002) Business Travel and Tourism. Great Britain, The Bath Press 12. Tribe, J., (1997) Corporate Strategy for Tourism. London, International Thomson Business Press 64 Articles 1. Mehta, Subhash C.; Loh, James C.M.; Mehta, Sanjay S. (1991) IncentiveTravel Marketing: the Singapore approach. Cornell Hotel and restaurant Administration Quarterly. 2. Carrol, J., Gossett, J., and OMalley, S., (2004) Choosing a destination. Incentive. New York: 2004. pg.36 3. Welsh Sara J., (2004) Enter the Dragon. Successful Meetings, Dec.2004, Vol. 53 Issue 13, p41, 3p, 8c Internet sites 1. Madjidov, M., (2003) Tourism Infrastructure Market of Uzbekistan available from http://www.bisnis.doc.gov/bisnis/bisdoc/040105UZtour.htm 2. Horak, S., (2003) Central Asia: Problems and Perspectives of International Tourism available from http://slavomirhorak.euweb.cz/konference_Tabor2004.htm 3. American Chamber of Commerce (2003) Uzbekistan, a great potential to be unlocked. Recommendations for an enhanced tourism strategy in Uzbekistan available from http://www.bisnis.doc.gov/bisnis/bisdoc/0308UZ_TourismENG.htm 4. World Tourism Organization, WTO Silk Road Project available from http://www.world-tourism.org/projects/silkroad/silkroad.html 65 Consulted libraries 1. In Sweden Library of Hgskolan, Borlnge 2. In France University library, Chambery 3. In the UK University Library, Bournemouth 66

VII APPENDICES
67 APPENDIX I Map: Central Asia Source: www.orexCA.com

68 APPENDIX II Map: Republic of Uzbekistan Source: www.orexCA.com 69 APPENDIX III Map: Silk Road countries Source: www.orexCA.com 70 APPENDIX IV QUESTIONNAIRE 1. Company information Company name Contact person Company telephone Company fax Company e-mail 2. Have you ever heard of Uzbekistan? Please, tick your answer ?Yes _ No 3. From which source of information have you heard of Uzbekistan? Several answers are possible. ?brochure ?TV ?guide ?radio ?tour operator ?Internet ?newspaper ?friends and relatives ?travel magazine ?personal visitation ?book ?other________________________ 4. Which part of the world does Uzbekistan belong to? _________________________________________________________________
Ethics and Tourism A range of studies has now appeared within the tourism/hospitality literature, relating ethical understandings to specific industry contexts: leisure studies (McNamee, Sheridan, & Buswell, 2001); tourism (Fennell, 1998); codes of ethics (Couglan, 2001); ecotourism(Malloy&Fennell, 1998a, 1998b). Tourism/ hospitality ethics education has also seen a rise in interest within the last decade. Vallen and Casado (2000) have suggested that there is a pressing need to prepare students to logically and ethically solve industry dilemmas that they will undoubtedly encounter. There have now been a number of studies examining ethical decision-making styles within educational contexts (Enghagen & Hort, 1992: Hall & Enghagen, 1991; Kent, Liam, Kahn, & Anene, 1993; Wheeler, 1994). Stevens (2001) has examined the responses of human resource managers and hospitality

students to a range of ethical scenarios that include issues such as theft, racial prejudice, keeping gifts, and false accusations; she reports that both human resource managers and students rated the act of theft the most unethical, followed by sexual harassment, and then an attempt to obtain propriety information. Finally, she makes the point that a great deal still needs to be understood with respect to the basic assumptions and manner by which students go about making their ethical decisions. The Derivation of Ethical Beliefs Ethics, until the latter half or the 20th century, was basically the domain of two major theories: utilitarianism and Kantian or deontological philosophy. Deontological theory arose, in large measure, from the works of the 18th century philosopher Immanual IDEAL ETHICAL BELIEFS 213 Kant; utilitarianism is generally associated with the works of philosophers Jeremy Bentham and J. S. Mill. In recent years, virtue ethics has come to represent an approach to ethics highlighting ethical character; such a view is in clear contrast to the approaches that emphasize rules and duties (deontological) or an emphasis upon the consequences of a citizen's action (utilitarianism). Virtue ethics would seek to emphasize the character of the person in the understanding of any ethical action. Commentators such as Hursthouse (1997) suggest that virtue ethics is both an old and a new theory: old in that it may be traced back to Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, and new in that it has been revived in the second part of the 20th century. Aristotle suggested that virtues are general traits of character revealed in habitual actions. Pincoffs (1996) has argued that Aristotelian virtues can be more precisely defined as traits of character manifested in habitual actions that are said to be good for a person to have. While Aristotle argued that many virtues may be identified, Rachels (1995) has distinguished four virtues from Aristotle's work that are held to be of prime importance in daily life: courage, generosity, honesty, and loyalty to family, friends, and close associates. Rachels (1998) makes the point that the major virtues are determined not by social convention or fashion, but rather by basic facts about the common human condition. This research has sought to explore the applicability of four major Aristotelian values of courage, generosity, honesty, and loyalty among potential tourism/hospitality industry employees, as they are perceived to be esteemed by visitors, tourism industry staff and management, and also may mediate industry employment context preferences.

Method Subjects The sample for this study comprised 493 students enrolled in years 11 and 12 in a number of state high schools from the Cairns region of Northern Australia. The survey was conducted during August and September, when many were considering postsecondary college study or employment options. Ross (1995, 1997, 1998) reports that there is a high level of interest among secondary college graduates in tourism/hospitality industry management employment. Measures Students rated each of the following ethical precepts, according to how important they believed them to be rated by tourism/hospitality industry staff, by tourism/hospitality industry management, and by visitors, and, finally, how important they personally regarded them to be. The four ethical value precepts represent the notions as suggested by Aristotle and Pincoffs (1996), and have also appeared in the writings of both Rokeach and Feather; furthermore, each ethical precept was adapted to the tourism/hospitality industry workplace context, particularly as each precept may be interpreted within a service quality framework (Noe, 1999). The four precepts rated were: being friendly, being honest, being frank, and being helpful. They were rated on a 5-point scale with 5 = important and 1 = unimportant. Respondents were also requested to rate each of the following work context preferences: mining, manufacturing, forestry, high technology, rural, light industries, tourism, heavy industries, service industries, transport, government, education, commerce/ finance, retail, and hospitality. These were rated on a 5-point scale with 5 = highly preferred and 1 = not preferred at all. Age and gender of all respondents were also recorded. Procedure The instrument was distributed among the major state high schools in the Far North Queensland region of Australia and administered to students during class hours by a careers counselor in each school; the nonresponse rate was less than 11%.

Uzbekistan
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Republic of Uzbekistan Ozbekiston Respublikasi

Flag

Emblem

Anthem: Ozbekiston Respublikasining Davlat Madhiyasi

Menu 0:00 Capital and largest city Official languages Recognised regional languages Tashkent
4116N 6913E / 41.267N 69.217E

Uzbek Karakalpak

Ethnic groups (1996)

81.1% Uzbek 5.4% Russian 4.0% Tajik 3.0% Kazakh 2.5% Karakalpak 1.5% Tatar 2.5% others[1]

Uzbek Demonym Unitary presidential state Government President Islam Karimov Prime Minister Shankar Mirziyoyev Supreme Assembly Legislature Upper house Senate Lower house Legislative Chamber Independence from the Soviet Union Formation 1747b

October 27, 1924 September 1, 1991 December 8, 1991 December 25, 1991 Area 447,400 km2 (56th) Total 172,742 sq mi Water (%) 4.9 Population 2013 estimate 30,183,400[2][3] (41st) 61.4/km2 (136th) Density 159.1/sq mi GDP (PPP) 2012 estimate Total $103.212 billion.[4] Per capita $3,536.[4] GDP (nominal) 2012 estimate Total $51.979 billion[4] Per capita $1,780[4] 26.8 Gini (2000) low 95th 0.617[5] HDI (2010) medium 102nd Uzbekistan som (O'zbekiston Currency so'mi) (UZS) UZT (UTC+5) Time zone Summer (DST) not observed (UTC+5) Right Drives on the +998 Calling code UZ ISO 3166 code .uz Internet TLD
a. b.

Uzbek SSR Declared Recognized Completed

Official Uzbek statistics.[citation needed] As the Emirate of Bukhara, Kokand Khanate, and Khwarezm.

Uzbekistan (U.S. pronunciation: i/z.bk..stn/, U.K. pronunciation: i/z.bk..stn/), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan (Uzbek: Ozbekiston Respublikasi, ) is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Before 1991, it was part of the Soviet Union. Once part of the Persian Samanid and later Timurid empires, the region which today includes the Republic of Uzbekistan was conquered in the early 16th century by nomads who spoke an Eastern Turkic language. This region was subsequently incorporated into the Russian Empire in the 19th century, and in 1924 it became a boundaried constituent republic of the Soviet Union, known as the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic (Uzbek SSR). It subsequently became the independent Republic of Uzbekistan on 31 August 1991 (officially, from the following day).

Most of Uzbekistans population today belong to the Uzbek ethnic group and speak the Uzbek language, one of the family of Turkic languages. Uzbekistan's economy relies mainly on commodity production, including cotton, gold, uranium, and natural gas. Despite the declared objective of transition to a market economy, Uzbekistan continues to maintain economic controls, which deter foreign investment and imports and benefit domestic 'import substitution'. The policy of a gradual, strictly controlled transition to the market economy has nevertheless produced beneficial results in the form of economic recovery after 1995. Uzbekistan's domestic policies on human rights and individual freedoms have been criticised by some international organizations.[6]

Contents
[hide]

1 Geography 2 Environment 3 History 4 Politics 5 Human rights 6 Provinces and districts 7 Economy 8 Demographics o 8.1 Largest cities o 8.2 Religion 8.2.1 Jewish community o 8.3 Languages 9 Communications 10 Transportation 11 Military 12 Foreign relations 13 Culture o 13.1 Music o 13.2 Education o 13.3 Holidays o 13.4 Cuisine o 13.5 Sport 14 See also 15 References o 15.1 Sources o 15.2 Printed sources 16 External links

Geography[edit]

Main article: Geography of Uzbekistan See also: List of cities in Uzbekistan

Satellite map of Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan has an area of 447,400 square kilometres (172,700 sq mi). It is the 56th largest country in the world by area and the 42nd by population.[7] Among the CIS countries, it is the 5th largest by area and the 3rd largest by population.[8] Uzbekistan lies between latitudes 37 and 46 N, and longitudes 56 and 74 E. It stretches 1,425 kilometres (885 mi) from west to east and 930 kilometres (580 mi) from north to south. Bordering Kazakhstan and the Aral Sea to the north and northwest, Turkmenistan to the southwest, Tajikistan to the southeast, and Kyrgyzstan to the northeast, Uzbekistan is one of the largest Central Asian states and the only Central Asian state to border all the other four. Uzbekistan also shares a short border (less than 150 km or 93 mi) with Afghanistan to the south. Uzbekistan is a dry, landlocked country. It is one of two doubly landlocked countries in the world that is, a country completely surrounded by landlocked countries the other being Liechtenstein. In addition, due to its location within a series of endorheic basins, none of its rivers lead to the sea. Less than 10% of its territory is intensively cultivated irrigated land in river valleys and oases. The rest is vast desert (Kyzyl Kum) and mountains. The highest point in Uzbekistan is the Khazret Sultan, at 4,643 metres (15,233 ft) above sea level, in the southern part of the Gissar Range in Surkhandarya Province, on the border with Tajikistan, just northwest of Dushanbe (formerly called Peak of the 22nd Congress of the Communist Party).[8] The climate in the Republic of Uzbekistan is continental, with little precipitation expected annually (100200 millimeters, or 3.97.9 inches). The average summer high temperature tends to be 40 C (104 F), while the average winter low temperature is around 23 C (9 F).[9] Major cities include Andijan, Bukhara, Samarkand, Namangan and the capital Tashkent.

Environment[edit]

Comparison of the Aral Sea between 1989 and 2008. Decades of questionable Soviet policies in pursuit of greater cotton production have resulted in a catastrophic scenario. The agricultural industry appears to be the main contributor to the pollution and devastation of the air and water in the country.[10] The Aral Sea used to be the fourth-largest inland sea on Earth, acting as an influencing factor in the air moisture and arid land use.[11] Since the 1960s, the decade when the misuse of the Aral Sea water began, it has shrunk to less than 50% of its former area and decreased in volume threefold. Reliable or even approximate data have not been collected, stored or provided by any organization or official agency. Much of the water was and continues to be used for the irrigation of cotton fields, a crop requiring a large amount of water to grow.[12] The question of who is responsible for the crisis remains open the Soviet scientists and politicians who directed the distribution of water during the 1960s, or the post-Soviet politicians who did not allocate sufficient funding for the building of dams and irrigation systems.[citation
needed]

Due to the Aral Sea problem, high salinity and contamination of the soil with heavy elements are especially widespread in Karakalpakstan, the region of Uzbekistan adjacent to the Aral Sea. The bulk of the nation's water resources is used for farming, which accounts for nearly 84% of the water usage and contributes to high soil salinity. Heavy use of pesticides and fertilizers for cotton growing further aggravates soil pollution.[9]

History[edit]
Main article: History of Uzbekistan

Female statuette wearing the kaunakes. Chlorite and limestone, Bactria, beginning of the 2nd millennium BC.

Alexander the Great at the Battle of Issus. The first people known to inhabit the Central Asian region of modern-day Uzbekistan were Iranian nomads who arrived from the northern grasslands of what is now Kazakhstan sometime in the first millennium BC. These nomads, who spoke Iranian dialects, settled in Central Asia and began to build an extensive irrigation system along the rivers of the region. At this time, cities such as Bukhoro (Bukhara), Samarqand (Samarkand) and Chash (Tashkent) began to appear as centers of emerging government and high culture. By the 5th century BC, the Bactrian, Soghdian, and Tokharian states dominated and ruled over the region. As China began to develop its silk trade with the West, Iranian cities took advantage of this commerce by becoming centres of trade. Using an extensive network of cities and rural settlements in the province of Mouwaurannahr (a name given the region after the Arab conquest) in Uzbekistan, and further east in what is today China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the Soghdian intermediaries became the wealthiest of these Iranian merchants. Because of this trade on what became known as the Silk Route, Bukhoro and Samarqand eventually became extremely wealthy cities, and at the times Transoxiana (Mawarannahr) was the only large and one of the most influential and powerful Persian provinces of antiquity.[13]

Map of the Sassanid Empire.

Registan, Sher-Dor Madrasah

Russian troops taking Samarkand in 1868. Macedonian ruler Alexander the Great conquered Sogdiana and Bactria in 327 BC, marrying Roxana, daughter of a local Bactrian chieftain. A conquest was supposedly of little help to Alexander as popular resistance was fierce, causing Alexander's army to be bogged down in the region that became the northern part of the Hellenistic Greco-Bactrian Kingdom. For many centuries the region of Uzbekistan was ruled by the Persian empires, including the Parthian and Sassanid Empires, as well as by other empires, for example those formed by the Turkic Hephthalite and Gokturk peoples. In the 8th century Transoxiana (the territory between the Amudarya and Syrdarya rivers) was conquered by Arabs (Ali ibn Sattor), which enriched the region with the Early Renaissance. Many notable scientists have lived and contributed during the Islamic Golden Age. Among the achievements of the scholars during this period were the development of trigonometry into its modern form (simplifying its practical application to calculate the phases of the moon), advances in optics, in astronomy, as well as in poetry, philosophy, art, calligraphy and many others, which set the foundation for the Muslim Renaissance.

In the 9th 10th centuries, Transoxiana was included into the Samanid State. Later, Transoxiana saw the incursion of the Turkic-ruled Karakhanids, as well as the Seljuks (Sultan Sanjar) and Kara-Khitans.[14] The Mongol conquest under Genghis Khan during the 13th century would bring about a change to the region. The Mongol invasion of Central Asia led to the displacement of some of the Iranian-speaking people of the region, their culture and heritage being superseded by that of the Mongolian-Turkic peoples who came thereafter. The invasions of Bukhara, Samarkand, and Urgench among others caused mass murders, such as when portions of Khwarezmia were completely destroyed.[15] Following the death of Genghis Khan in 1227, his empire was divided among his four sons and his family members. Despite the potential for serious fragmentation, the Mongol law of the Mongol Empire maintained orderly succession for several more generations, and control of most of Transoxiana stayed in the hands of the direct descendants of Chagatai Khan, the second son of Genghis Khan. Orderly succession, prosperity, and internal peace prevailed in the Chaghatai lands, and the Mongol Empire as a whole remained a strong and united kingdom. (Ulus Batiy, Sattarkhan)[16] In the early 14th century, however, as the empire began to break up into its constituent parts, the Chaghatai territory was disrupted as the princes of various tribal groups competed for influence. One tribal chieftain, Timur (Tamerlane),[17] emerged from these struggles in the 1380s as the dominant force in Transoxiana. Although he was not a descendant of Chinggis, Timur became the de facto ruler of Transoxiana and proceeded to conquer all of western Central Asia, Iran, Asia Minor, and the southern steppe region north of the Aral Sea. He also invaded Russia, Turkey, and Iraq, and placed under his command Iran and India, before dying during an invasion of China in 1405.[16] Timur was known for his extreme brutality and his conquests were accompanied by genocidal massacres in the cities he occupied.[18] Timur initiated the last flowering of Transoxiana by gathering together numerous artisans and scholars from the vast lands he had conquered into his capital, Samarqand,. By supporting such people, Timur imbued his empire with a very rich Perso-Islamic culture. During Amir Timur's reign and the reigns of his immediate descendants, a wide range of religious and palatial construction masterpieces were undertaken in Samarqand and other population centers.[19] Timur also initiated an exchange of medical discoveries and patronized physicians, scientists and artists from the neighboring countries like India;[20] His grandson Ulugh Beg was one of the world's first great astronomers. It was during the Timurid dynasty that Turkic, in the form of the Chaghatai dialect, became a literary language in its own right in Transoxiana, although the Timurids were Persianate in nature. The greatest Chaghataid writer, Ali-Shir Nava'i, was active in the city of Herat, now in northwestern Afghanistan, in the second half of the 15th century.[16] The Timurid state quickly broke into two halves after the death of Timur. The chronic internal fighting of the Timurids attracted the attention of the Uzbek nomadic tribes living to the north of the Aral Sea. In 1501 the Uzbek forces began a wholesale invasion of Transoxiana.[16] The slave

trade in the Khanate of Bukhara became prominent and was firmly established.[21] Estimates from 1821 suggest that between 25,000 and 60,000 Persian slaves were working in Bukhara alone at that time.[22] Before Russian arrival, present Uzbekistan was divided between Emirate of Bukhara and khanates of Khiva and Kokand. In the 19th century, the Russian Empire began to expand and spread into Central Asia. By 1911 Russians living in Uzbekistan numbered 210,306.[23] The "Great Game" period is generally regarded as running from approximately 1813 to the Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907. A second, less intensive phase followed the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. At the start of the 19th century, there were some 3,200 kilometres (2,000 mi) separating British India and the outlying regions of Tsarist Russia. Much of the land in-between was unmapped. By the beginning of 1920, Central Asia was firmly in the hands of Russia and, despite some early resistance to the Bolsheviks, Uzbekistan and the rest of the Central Asia became a part of the Soviet Union. On October 27, 1924 the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic was created. From 1941 to 1945, during World War II, 1,433,230 people from Uzbekistan fought in the Red Army against Nazi Germany. (A number also fought on the German side.) As many as 263,005 Uzbek soldiers died in the battlefields of the Eastern Front, and 32,670 went missing in action.[24] On August 31, 1991, Uzbekistan declared independence, proclaiming September 1 as the National Independence Day.

Politics[edit]
Main article: Politics of Uzbekistan

The Uzbek parliament.

Islam Karimov, president of Uzbekistan, during a visit to Pentagon in 2002. The first elections of the Oliy Majlis (Parliament) were held under a resolution adopted by the 16th Supreme Soviet in 1994. In that year, the Supreme Soviet was replaced by the Oliy Majlis. Since then Uzbekistan has held presidential and parliamentarian elections on regular basis but no real opposition candidates or parties are able to participate.[citation needed] The third elections for the bicameral 150-member Oliy Majlis the Legislative Chamber and the 100-member Senate for five-year terms, were held on December 27, 2009, after the second elections that were held in December 2004 2005. The Oliy Majlis was unicameral up to 2004. Its strength increased from 69 deputies (members) in 1994 to 120 in 200405 and presently to 150. The executive holds a great deal of power, and the legislature has little power to shape laws. Under terms of a December 27, 1995 referendum, Islam Karimov's first term was extended. Another national referendum was held January 27, 2002 to extend the Constitutional Presidential term from 5 years to 7 years. The referendum passed, and Islam Karimov's term was extended by an act of parliament to December 2007. Most international observers refused to participate in the process and did not recognize the results, dismissing them as not meeting basic standards. The 2002 referendum also included a plan for a bicameral parliament, consisting of a lower house (the Oliy Majlis) and an upper house (Senate). Members of the lower house are to be "full time" legislators. Elections for the new bicameral parliament took place on December 26. There is currently a political situation emerging in Uzbekistan around Islam Karimov and the selection of Akbar Abdullaev as successor.[citation needed] The OSCE limited observation mission concluded that the elections fell significantly short of OSCE commitments and other international standards for democratic elections. Several political parties have been formed with government approval. Similarly, although multiple media outlets

(radio, TV, newspaper) have been established, these either remain under government control or rarely broach political topics. Independent political parties were allowed to organise, recruit members and hold conventions and press conferences, but they have been denied registration under restrictive registration procedures.

Human rights[edit]
Main article: Human rights in Uzbekistan See also: Andijan massacre The Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan asserts that "democracy in the Republic of Uzbekistan shall be based upon common human principles, according to which the highest value shall be the human being, his life, freedom, honour, dignity and other inalienable rights." The official position is summarised in a memorandum "The measures taken by the government of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of providing and encouraging human rights"[25] and amounts to the following: the government does everything that is in its power to protect and to guarantee the human rights of Uzbekistan's citizens. Uzbekistan continuously improves its laws and institutions in order to create a more humane society. Over 300 laws regulating the rights and basic freedoms of the people have been passed by the parliament. For instance, an office of Ombudsman was established in 1996.[26] On August 2, 2005, President Islam Karimov signed a decree that abolished capital punishment in Uzbekistan on January 1, 2008. However, non-governmental human rights watchdogs, such as IHF, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, as well as United States Department of State and Council of the European Union define Uzbekistan as "an authoritarian state with limited civil rights"[27] and express profound concern about "wide-scale violation of virtually all basic human rights".[28] According to the reports, the most widespread violations are torture, arbitrary arrests, and various restrictions of freedoms: of religion, of speech and press, of free association and assembly. It has also been reported that forced sterilization of rural Uzbek women has been sanctioned by the government.[29] The reports maintain that the violations are most often committed against members of religious organizations, independent journalists, human rights activists and political activists, including members of the banned opposition parties. The 2005 civil unrest in Uzbekistan, which resulted in several hundred people being killed, is viewed by many as a landmark event in the history of human rights abuse in Uzbekistan.[30][31][32] A concern has been expressed and a request for an independent investigation of the events has been made by the United States, European Union, the United Nations, the OSCE Chairman-inOffice and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights. The government of Uzbekistan is accused of unlawful termination of human life and of denying its citizens freedom of assembly and freedom of expression. The government vehemently rebuffs the accusations, maintaining that it merely conducted an anti-terrorist operation, exercising only necessary force.[33] In addition, some officials claim that "an information war on Uzbekistan has been declared" and the human rights violations in Andijan are invented by the enemies of Uzbekistan as a convenient pretext for intervention in the country's internal affairs.[34]

Uzbekistan also does not allow Tajiks to teach their youth in their native language. There have been cases of destroying Tajiki (Persian-language) literary works.[35]

Provinces and districts[edit]

Main articles: Provinces of Uzbekistan and Districts of Uzbekistan Uzbekistan is divided into twelve provinces (viloyatlar, singular viloyat, compound noun viloyati e.g., Toshkent viloyati, Samarqand viloyati, etc.), one autonomous republic (respublika, compound noun respublikasi e.g. Qaraqalpaqstan Avtonom Respublikasi, Karakalpakistan Autonomous Republic, etc.), and one independent city (shahar. compound noun shahri, e.g., Toshkent shahri). Names are given below in the Uzbek language, although numerous variations of the transliterations of each name exist.

Political Map of Uzbekistan Division Buxoro Viloyati Jizzax Viloyati Navoiy Viloyati Qashqadaryo Viloyati Samarqand Viloyati Sirdaryo Viloyati Surxondaryo Viloyati Toshkent Viloyati Toshkent Shahri Fergana Valley Region Farg'ona Viloyati Andijon Viloyati Area Population (2008)[36] Key (km) Buxoro (Bukhara) 39,400 1,576,800 3 Jizzax 20,500 1,090,900 5 Navoiy 110,800 834,100 7 Qarshi 28,400 2,537,600 8 Samarqand 16,400 3,032,000 9 Guliston 5,100 698,100 10 Termiz 20,800 2,012,600 11 Toshkent (Tashkent) 15,300 2,537,500 12 Toshkent (Tashkent) 335 2,192,700 1 Capital City Farg'ona (Fergana) 6,800 Andijon 4,200 2,997,400 2,477,900 4 2

Division

Capital City

Namangan Namangan Viloyati Karakalpakstan Region Urganch Xorazm Viloyati Qaraqalpaqstan Respublikasi Nukus

Area Population (2008)[36] Key (km) 7,900 2,196,200 6 6,300 1,517,600 160,000 1,612,300 13 14

The statistics for Toshkent Viloyati also include the statistics for Toshkent Shahri. The provinces are further divided into districts (tuman).

Economy[edit]
Main article: Economy of Uzbekistan

Tashkent

Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan.

Samarkand Uzbekistan has the fourth largest gold deposits in the world. The country mines 80 tons of gold annually, seventh in the world. Uzbekistan's copper deposits rank tenth in the world and its uranium deposits twelfth. The country's uranium production ranks seventh globally.[37][38][39] The Uzbek national gas company, Uzbekneftgas, ranks 11th in the world in natural gas production with an annual output of 60 to 70 billion cubic meters.[citation needed] The country has significant untapped reserves of oil and gas: there are 194 deposits of hydrocarbons in Uzbekistan, including 98 condensate and natural gas deposits and 96 gas condensate deposits.[citation needed] The largest corporations involved in Uzbekistan's energy sector are the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), Petronas, the Korea National Oil Corporation, Gazprom, Lukoil, and Uzbekneftgas.[citation needed] Along with many Commonwealth of Independent States or CIS economies, Uzbekistan's economy declined during the first years of transition and then recovered after 1995, as the cumulative effect of policy reforms began to be felt.[citation needed] It has shown robust growth, rising by 4% per year between 1998 and 2003 and accelerating thereafter to 7%8% per year. According to IMF estimates,[40] the GDP in 2008 will be almost double its value in 1995 (in constant prices). Since 2003 annual inflation rates averaged less than 10%.[citation needed] Uzbekistan has a very low GNI per capita (US$610 in current dollars in 2006, giving a PPP equivalent of US$2,250).[41] By GNI per capita in PPP equivalents Uzbekistan ranks 169 among 209 countries; among the 12 CIS countries, only Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan had lower GNI per capita in 2006. Economic production is concentrated in commodities. In 2011, Uzbekistan was the world's seventh-largest producer and fifth-largest exporter of cotton[42] as well as the seventh largest world producer of gold. It is also a regionally significant producer of natural gas, coal, copper, oil, silver and uranium.[43] Agriculture employs 28% of Uzbekistan's labour force and contributes 24% of its GDP (2006 data).[8] While official unemployment is very low, underemployment especially in rural areas is estimated to be at least 20%.[1] Still, at cotton-harvest time, all students and teachers are mobilized as unpaid labour to help in the fields.[44] The use of child labour in Uzbekistan has led several companies, including Tesco,[45] C&A,[46] Marks & Spencer, Gap, and H&M, to boycott Uzbek cotton.[47]

Facing a multitude of economic challenges upon acquiring independence, the government adopted an evolutionary reform strategy, with an emphasis on state control, reduction of imports and self-sufficiency in energy. Since 1994, the state-controlled media have repeatedly proclaimed the success of this "Uzbekistan Economic Model"[48] and suggested that it is a unique example of a smooth transition to the market economy while avoiding shock, pauperism and stagnation. The gradualist reform strategy has involved postponing significant macroeconomic and structural reforms. The state in the hands of the bureaucracy has remained a dominant influence in the economy. Corruption permeates the society and grows more rampant over time: Uzbekistan's 2005 Corruption Perception Index was 137 out of 159 countries, whereas in 2007 Uzbekistan was 175th out of 179 countries. A February 2006 report on the country by the International Crisis Group suggests that revenues earned from key exports, especially cotton, gold, corn and increasingly gas, are distributed among a very small circle of the ruling elite, with little or no benefit for the populace at large.[49] According to the Economist Intelligence Unit, "the government is hostile to allowing the development of an independent private sector, over which it would have no control".[50] Thus, the middle class is marginalised economically and, consequently, politically.[citation needed] The economic policies have repelled foreign investment, which is the lowest per capita in the CIS.[51] For years, the largest barrier to foreign companies entering the Uzbekistan market has been the difficulty of converting currency. In 2003, the government accepted the obligations of Article VIII under the International Monetary Fund (IMF).[52] providing for full currency convertibility. However, strict currency controls and the tightening of borders have lessened the effect of this measure. Uzbekistan experienced rampant inflation of around 1000% per year immediately after independence (19921994). Stabilisation efforts implemented with guidance from the IMF[53] paid off. The inflation rates were brought down to 50% in 1997 and then to 22% in 2002. Since 2003 annual inflation rates averaged less than 10%.[40] Tight economic policies in 2004 resulted in a drastic reduction of inflation to 3.8% (although alternative estimates based on the price of a true market basket, put it at 15%).[54] The inflation rates moved up to 6.9% in 2006 and 7.6% in 2007 but have remained in the single-digit range.[55] The government of Uzbekistan restricts foreign imports in many ways, including high import duties. Excise taxes are applied in a highly discriminatory manner to protect locally produced goods. Official tariffs are combined with unofficial, discriminatory charges resulting in total charges amounting to as much as 100 to 150% of the actual value of the product, making imported products virtually unaffordable.[56] Import substitution is an officially declared policy and the government proudly reports a reduction by a factor of two in the volume of consumer goods imported. A number of CIS countries are officially exempt from Uzbekistan import duties. The Republican Stock Exchange (RSE) opened in 1994. The stocks of all Uzbek joint stock companies (around 1250) are traded on RSE. The number of listed companies as of January 2013 exceeds 110. Securities market volume reached 2 trillion in 2012, and the number is rapidly

growing due to the rising interest by companies of attracting necessary resources through the capital market. According to Central Depository as of January 2013 par value of outstanding shares of Uzbek emitters exceeded 9 trillion. Uzbekistan's external position has been strong since 2003.[citation needed] Thanks in part to the recovery of world market prices of gold and cotton (the country's key export commodities), expanded natural gas and some manufacturing exports, and increasing labour migrant transfers, the current account turned into a large surplus (between 9% and 11% of GDP from 2003 to 2005) and foreign exchange reserves, including gold, more than doubled to around US$3 billion.[citation needed] Foreign exchange reserves amounted in 2010 to 13 billion US$.[57] Uzbekistan is considered one of the fastest growing economies in the world (top 26) in the next decades according to a global bank HSBC survey[58]

Demographics[edit]
Main article: Demographics of Uzbekistan

Shakh-i Zindeh mosque, Samarkand.

Uzbek children Uzbekistan is Central Asia's most populous country. Its 29,559,100[2] citizens comprise nearly half the region's total population.

The population of Uzbekistan is very young: 34.1% of its people are younger than 14 (2008 estimate).[1] According to official sources, Uzbeks comprise a majority (80%) of the total population. Other ethnic groups include Russians 5.5%, Tajiks 5% (official estimate and disputed), Kazakhs 3%, Karakalpaks 2.5% and Tatars 1.5% (1996 estimates).[1] There is some controversy about the percentage of the Tajik population. While official state numbers from Uzbekistan put the number at 5%, the number is said to be an understatement and some Western scholars put the number up to 20%30%.[59][60][61][62] The Uzbeks absorbed, among others, the Sarts, a Turko-Persian population of Central Asian peasants and merchants. According to recent genetic genealogy testing from a University of Oxford study, the genetic admixture of the Uzbeks clusters somewhere between the Mongols and the Iranian peoples.[63] Uzbekistan has an ethnic Korean population that was forcibly relocated to the region by Stalin from the Soviet Far East in 19371938. There are also small groups of Armenians in Uzbekistan, mostly in Tashkent and Samarkand. The nation is 88% Muslim (mostly Sunni, with a 5% Shi'a minority), 9% Eastern Orthodox and 3% other faiths. The U.S. State Department's International Religious Freedom Report 2004 reports that 0.2% of the population are Buddhist (these being ethnic Koreans). The Bukharan Jews have lived in Central Asia, mostly in Uzbekistan, for thousands of years. There were 94,900 Jews in Uzbekistan in 1989[64] (about 0.5% of the population according to the 1989 census), but now, since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, most Central Asian Jews left the region for the United States, Germany, or Israel. Fewer than 5,000 Jews remained in Uzbekistan in 2007.[65] Russians in Uzbekistan represent 5.5% of the total population. During the Soviet period, Russians and Ukrainians constituted more than half the population of Tashkent.[66] The country counted nearly 1.5 million Russians, 12.5% of the population, in the 1970 census.[67] After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, significant emigration of ethnic Russians has taken place, mostly for economic reasons.[68] In the 1940s, the Crimean Tatars, along with the Germans, Chechens, Greeks, Turks, Kurds and many other nationalities were deported to Central Asia.[69] Approximately 100,000 Crimean Tatars continue to live in Uzbekistan.[70] The number of Greeks in Tashkent has decreased from 35,000 in 1974 to about 12,000 today.[71] The majority of Meskhetian Turks left the country after the pogroms in the Fergana valley in June 1989.[72] At least 10% of Uzbekistan's labor force works abroad (mostly in Russia and Kazakhstan).[73] Uzbekistan has a 99.3% literacy rate among adults older than 15 (2003 estimate),[1] which is attributable to the free and universal education system of the Soviet Union.

Largest cities[edit]

v t

Largest cities or towns of Uzbekistan

http://www.geonames.org/SY/largest-cities-in-uzbekistan.html Ran k Pop Ran Provin Pop Name . k ce . 2 Navoiy 428 Navoi 1 Tashkent Tashkent 339 11 Provinc 200 y 600 e 1 Namanga Namangan 2 565 Province n 200 1 Andijan 3 Andijan 448 Province 300 1 Samarka Samarkand 4 309 Province nd 300 1 Fergana 5 Fergana 419 Province 400 1 Qashqadaryo 6 Qarshi 218 Province 000 Karakalpakst 843 7 Nukus an 000 Jizzax 627 8 Jizzax Province 800 Bukhara 605 9 Bukhara Province 700 Xorazm 547 10 Xorazm Province 000 Name Province

Andijan

Tashkent

Samarkand

Religion[edit]
This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2013) Main articles: Islam in Uzbekistan and Christianity in Uzbekistan

Mosque of Bukhara. Islam is by far the dominant religion in Uzbekistan, as Muslims constitute 90% of the population while 5% of the population follow Russian Orthodox Christianity, and 5% of the population follow other religions according to a 2009 US State Department release.[74] However, a 2009 Pew Research Center report stated that Uzbekistan's population is 96.3% Muslim.[75] An estimated 93,000 Jews were once present in the country.[citation needed] Despite its predominance, the practice of Islam is far from monolithic. Many versions of the faith have been practiced in Uzbekistan. The conflict of Islamic tradition with various agendas of reform or secularization throughout the 20th century has left the outside world with a confused notion of Islamic practices in Central Asia.[citation needed] 54% of Muslims are non-denominational Muslims, 18% are Sunnis and 1% are Shias.[76] The end of Soviet power in Uzbekistan did not bring an upsurge of fundamentalism, as many had predicted, but rather a gradual reacquaintance with the precepts of the faith. Although constitutionally maintaining rights to freedom of religion, Uzbekistan maintains a ban on all religious activities not approved by that state, with particularly harsh treatment of Protestant Christians being commonplace. See: Human Rights; Freedom of Religion, Uzbekistan Jewish community[edit] This section relies largely or entirely upon a single source. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources. (August 2013) Main articles: Uzbek Jews and Bukharan Jews

Jewish students with their teacher in Samarkand, ca. 1910. According to local traditions Jews began to settle in the area 2,000 years ago after the exile from the kingdom of Israel by the Babylonian, other traditions focus on Jewish merchants settling in the area of the silk road and Jews that came to the area after Persian persecutions some 1,500 years ago. The Jewish community flourished for centuries with occasional hardships during the reign of certain rulers. During the rule of Tamerlane in the 14th century Jews contributed greatly to his efforts to rebuild Samarkand and a great Jewish center was established there. However, after Tamerlane's death Jews endured harsh treatment, strict Muslim authorities enacted humiliating and restrictive rules forbidding Jews from living outside the Jewish quarter, Jewish gates and shops had to be built lower than those of the Muslims. Jews had to wear a black cap and a cord belt, and accounts by Jewish witnesses in court were not valid for Muslims.[77] After the area came under Russian rule in 1868 Jews were granted equal rights with the local population. In that period some 50,000 Jews lived in Samarkand and 20,000 in Bukhara. After the Russian revolution in 1917 and the establishment of the Soviet regime Jewish religious life was restricted and by 1935 only one synagogue out of 35 left in Samarkand; nevertheless underground community life continued during the Soviet era. During WW2 tens of thousands of Jews from the European parts of the Soviet Union arrived in Uzbekistan as refugees or were exiled by Stalin, and by 1970 there were 103,000 Jews registered in the republic.[77] At the late 80's of the 20th century with the rise of nationalistic riots as a result of the dissolution of the Soviet Union, damaging, among others, the Jewish quarter in Andijan, most of the Jews of Uzbekistan immigrated to Israel and to the US. A small community of several thousands remains today in the country- some 7,000 live in Tashkent, 3,000 in Bukhara and 700 in Samarkand.[78]

Languages[edit]
Main article: Uzbek language

A page in Uzbek language written in Nastalq script printed in Tashkent 1911 The Uzbek language is the only official state language,[79] and since 1992 is officially written in the Latin alphabet. The Tajik language is widespread in the cities of Bukhara and Samarkand because of their relatively large population of ethnic Tajiks.[60] It is also found in large pockets in Kasan, Namangan and Khokand in Fergana valley, as well as in Ahangaran, Baghistan in the middle Syr Darya distrist, and finally in, Shahrisabz, Kitab and the river valleys of Kafiringan and Chaganian rivers, forming altogether, approximately 25-30% of the population of Uzbekistan Russian is an important language for interethnic communication, especially in the cities, including much day-to-day technical, scientific, governmental and business use. Russian is the main language of over 14% of the population and is spoken as a second language by many more. The use of Russian in remote rural areas has always been limited, and today most school children have no proficiency in Russian even in urban centres. However, it was reported in 2003 that over half of the population could speak and understand Russian, and a renewed close political relationship between Russia and Uzbekistan has meant that official discouragement of Russian has dropped off sharply.[80] Before 1920s, the written language of Uzbeks was called Turki (known to Western scholars as Chagatay) and used the Nastalq script. In 1926, the Latin alphabet was introduced and went through several revisions throughout the 1930s. Finally, in 1940, Cyrillic alphabet was abruptly introduced by Soviet authorities and was used until the fall of Soviet Union. In 1993, Uzbekistan shifted back to the Latin script, which was modified in 1996 and is being taught in schools since 2005.[81] Nevertheless, many signs and notices (including official government boards in the streets) are still written in Uzbek Cyrillic script[citation needed].

Communications[edit]
Main article: Communications in Uzbekistan According to the official source report, as of March 10, 2008, the number of cellular phone users in Uzbekistan reached 7 million, up from 3.7 million on July 1, 2007.[82] The largest mobile operator in terms of number of subscribers is MTS-Uzbekistan (former Uzdunrobita and part of Russian Mobile TeleSystems) and it is followed by Beeline (part of Russia's Beeline) and UCell (ex Coscom) (originally part of the U.S. MCT Corp., now a subsidiary of the Nordic/Baltic telecommunication company TeliaSonera AB).[83] As of July 1, 2007, the estimated number of internet users was 1.8 million, according to UzACI.[citation needed] Internet Censorship exists in Uzbekistan and in October 2012 the government toughened internet censorship by blocking access to proxy servers.[84]Reporters Without Borders has named Uzbekistan's government an "Enemy of the Internet" and government control over the internet has increased dramatically since the start of the Arab Spring.[85] The press in Uzbekistan practices self-censorship and foreign journalists have been gradually expelled from the country since the Andijan massacre of 2005.[85]

Transportation[edit]
Main article: Transportation in Uzbekistan

Central Station of Tashkent

Afrosiyob high-speed train built by Spanish company Talgo Tashkent, the nation's capital and largest city, has a three-line rapid transit system built in 1977, and expanded in 2001 after ten years' independence from the Soviet Union. Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan are currently the only two countries in Central Asia with a subway system. It is promoted as one of the cleanest systems in the former Soviet Union.[86] The stations are exceedingly ornate. For example, the station Metro Kosmonavtov built in 1984 is decorated using a space travel theme to recognise the achievements of mankind in space exploration and to commemorate the role of Vladimir Dzhanibekov, the Soviet cosmonaut of Uzbek origin. A statue of Vladimir Dzhanibekov stands near a station entrance. There are government-operated trams and buses running across the city. There are also many taxis, registered and unregistered. Uzbekistan has plants that produce modern cars. The car production is supported by the government and the Korean auto company Daewoo. The Uzbek government acquired a 50% stake in Daewoo in 2005[citation needed] for an undisclosed sum. In May 2007 UzDaewooAuto, the car maker, signed a strategic agreement with General Motors-Daewoo Auto and Technology (GMDAT, see GM Uzbekistan also).[87] The government bought a stake in Turkey's Koc in SamKochAvto, a producer of small buses and lorries. Afterward, it signed an agreement with Isuzu Motors of Japan to produce Isuzu buses and lorries.[88] Train links connect many towns in Uzbekistan, as well as neighboring former republics of the Soviet Union. Moreover, after independence two fast-running train systems were established. Uzbekistan has launched the first high-speed railway in Central Asia in September 2011 between Tashkent and Samarqand. The new high-speed electric train Talgo 250, called Afrosiyob,[89] was manufactured by Patentes Talgo S.L. (Spain) and took its first trip from Tashkent to Samarkand on August 26, 2011.[90] There is a large airplane plant that was built during the Soviet era Tashkent Chkalov Aviation Manufacturing Plant or in Russian. The plant originated during World War II, when production facilities were evacuated south and east to avoid capture by advancing Nazi forces. Until the late 1980s, the plant was one of the leading airplane production centers in the USSR. With dissolution of the Soviet Union its manufacturing equipment became outdated; most of the workers were laid off. Now it produces only a few planes a year, but with interest from Russian companies growing, there are rumours of production-enhancement plans.

Military[edit]
Main article: Military of Uzbekistan

Uzbek troops during a cooperative operation exercise. With close to 65,000 servicemen, Uzbekistan possesses the largest armed forces in Central Asia. The military structure is largely inherited from the Turkestan Military District of the Soviet Army, although it is going through a reform to be based mainly on motorized infantry with some light and special forces[citation needed]. The Uzbek Armed Forces' equipment is not modern, and training, while improving, is neither uniform nor adequate for its new mission of territorial security[citation needed]. The government has accepted the arms control obligations of the former Soviet Union, acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (as a non-nuclear state), and supported an active program by the U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) in western Uzbekistan (Nukus and Vozrozhdeniye Island). The Government of Uzbekistan spends about 3.7% of GDP on the military but has received a growing infusion of Foreign Military Financing (FMF) and other security assistance funds since 1998. Following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the U.S., Uzbekistan approved the U.S. Central Command's request for access to an air base, the Karshi-Khanabad airfield, in southern Uzbekistan. However, Uzbekistan demanded that the U.S. withdraw from the airbases after the Andijan massacre and the U.S. reaction to this massacre. The last US troops left Uzbekistan in November 2005. On 23 June 2006, Uzbekistan became a full participant in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), but informed the CSTO to suspend its membership in June 2012.[91]

Foreign relations[edit]
Main articles: Foreign relations of Uzbekistan and International organization membership of Uzbekistan

Embassy of Uzbekistan in Washington, D.C.. Uzbekistan joined the Commonwealth of Independent States in December 1991. However, it is opposed to reintegration and withdrew from the CIS collective security arrangement in 1999. Since that time, Uzbekistan has participated in the CIS peacekeeping force in Tajikistan and in UN-organized groups to help resolve the Tajikistan and Afghanistan conflicts, both of which it sees as posing threats to its own stability. Previously close to Washington (which gave Uzbekistan half a billion dollars in aid in 2004, about a quarter of its military budget), the government of Uzbekistan has recently restricted American military use of the airbase at Karshi-Khanabad for air operations in neighboring Afghanistan.[92] Uzbekistan was an active supporter of U.S. efforts against worldwide terrorism and joined the coalitions that have dealt with both Afghanistan and Iraq. The relationship between Uzbekistan and the United States began to deteriorate after the socalled "colour revolutions" in Georgia and Ukraine (and to a lesser extent Kyrgyzstan). When the U.S. joined in a call for an independent international investigation of the bloody events at Andijan, the relationship further declined, and President Islam Karimov changed the political alignment of the country to bring it closer to Russia and China. In late July 2005, the government of Uzbekistan ordered the United States to vacate an air base in Karshi-Kanabad (near Uzbekistan's border with Afghanistan) within 180 days. Karimov had offered use of the base to the U.S. shortly after 9/11. It is also believed by some Uzbeks that the protests in Andijan were brought about by the U.K. and U.S. influences in the area of Andijan. This is another reason for the hostility between Uzbekistan and the West. Uzbekistan is a member of the United Nations (UN) (since March 2, 1992), the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC), Partnership for Peace (PfP), and the Organisation for Security and

Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). It belongs to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO) (comprising the five Central Asian countries, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan). In 1999, Uzbekistan joined the GUAM alliance (Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova), which was formed in 1997 (making it GUUAM), but pulled out of the organization in 2005. Uzbekistan is also a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and hosts the SCOs Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) in Tashkent. Uzbekistan joined the new Central Asian Cooperation Organisation (CACO) in 2002. The CACO consists of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. It is a founding member of, and remains involved in, the Central Asian Union, formed with Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, and joined in March 1998 by Tajikistan. In September 2006, UNESCO presented Islam Karimov an award for Uzbekistan's preservation of its rich culture and traditions. Despite criticism, this seems to be a sign of improving relationships between Uzbekistan and the West. The month of October 2006 also saw a decrease in the isolation of Uzbekistan from the West. The EU announced that it was planning to send a delegation to Uzbekistan to talk about human rights and liberties, after a long period of hostile relations between the two. Although it is equivocal about whether the official or unofficial version of the Andijan Massacre is true, the EU is evidently willing to ease its economic sanctions against Uzbekistan. Nevertheless, it is generally assumed among Uzbekistan's population that the government will stand firm in maintaining its close ties with the Russian Federation and in its theory that the 20042005 protests in Uzbekistan were promoted by the USA and UK. In January 2008, Lola Karimova-Tillyaeva was appointed to her current role as Uzbekistans ambassador to UNESCO. Karimova-Tillyaeva and her team have been instrumental in promoting inter-cultural dialogue by increasing European societys awareness of Uzbekistans cultural and historical heritage.

Culture[edit]
Main article: Culture of Uzbekistan See also: Kurash, Islam in Uzbekistan, and Scout Association of Uzbekistan

Traditional Uzbek pottery.

Old Uzbek man from central Uzbekistan.

Newlywed couples visit Tamerlane's statues to receive wedding blessings.

Navoi Opera Theater in Tashkent Uzbekistan has a wide mix of ethnic groups and cultures, with the Uzbek being the majority group. In 1995 about 71% of Uzbekistan's population was Uzbek. The chief minority groups were Russians (8%), Tajiks (530%),[59][60][61][93] Kazaks (4%), Tatars (2.5%) and Karakalpaks (2%). It is said, however, that the number of non-Uzbek people living in Uzbekistan is decreasing as Russians and other minority groups slowly leave and Uzbeks return from other parts of the former Soviet Union. When Uzbekistan gained independence in 1991, there was concern that Muslim fundamentalism would spread across the region. The expectation was that a country long denied freedom of religious practice would undergo a very rapid increase in the expression of its dominant faith. As of 1994, over half of Uzbekistan's population was said to be Muslim, though in an official survey few of that number had any real knowledge of the religion or knew how to practice it. However, Islamic observance is increasing in the region.

Music[edit]

Dance of a Bacha in Samarkand between 1905 and 1915

Sevara Nazarkhan Main article: Music of Uzbekistan The neutrality of this section is disputed. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (August 2012) Central Asian classical music is called Shashmaqam, which arose in Bukhara in the late 16th century when that city was a regional capital. Shashmaqam is closely related to Azerbaijani Mugam and Uyghur muqam. The name, which translates as six maqams refers to the structure of the music, which contains six sections in six different Musical modes, similar to classical Persian traditional music. Interludes of spoken Sufi poetry interrupt the music, typically beginning at a lower register and gradually ascending to a climax before calming back down to the beginning tone. Endurance of listening and continual audiences that attend events, such as Bazms or Weddings, is what makes the Folk-pop style of music so popular. The classical music in Uzbekistan is very different than that of the pop music. Mostly men listen to Solo or Duo shows during a morning or evening meeting amongst men. Shash maqam, which is the main component of the classical genre of music. The large support of the musicians from high class families, which meant the Patronage was to be paid to the Shash maqam above all things. Poetry is where some of the music is drawn from. In some instances of the music, the 2 languages are even mixed in the same song. In the 1950s, the folk music became less popular, and the genre was barred from the radio stations. They did not completely dispel the music all together, although the name changed to

Feudal music. Although banned, the folk musical groups continued to play their music in their own ways and spread it individually as well. Many say that it was the most liberated musical experience in their lives.[citation needed]

Silk and Spice Festival in Bukhara

Education[edit]

WIUT main building in Summer Uzbekistan has a high literacy rate, with about 99.3% of adults above the age of 15 being able to read and write. However with only 76% of the under-15 population currently enrolled in education (and only 20% of the 3-6 year olds attending pre-school), this figure may drop in the future. Students attend school Monday through Saturday during the school year,with official education concluding at the end of the 9th grade. Post secondary school, students routinely attend trade or technical colleges. There are two international schools operating in Uzbekistan, both in Tashkent: The British School catering for elementary students only, and Tashkent International School, a K-12 international curriculum school. Uzbekistan has encountered severe budget shortfalls in its education program. The education law of 1992 began the process of theoretical reform, but the physical base has deteriorated and curriculum revision has been slow. A large contributor to this decline is the low level of wages received by teachers and the lack of spending on infrastructure, buildings and resources on behalf of the government. Corruption within the education system is also rampant, with students from wealthier families routinely bribing teachers and school executives to achieve high grades without attending school, or undertaking official examinations.[94]

Uzbekistan's universities create almost 600,000 graduates annually, though the general standard of university graduates, and the overall level of education within the tertiary system is low. Westminster University maintains a campus in Tashkent offering English language courses across several disciplines.

Holidays[edit]
See also: Public holidays in Uzbekistan

January 1 New Year "Yangi Yil Bayrami" January 14 Vatan Himoyachilari kuni March 8 International Women's Day "Xalqaro Xotin-Qizlar kuni" March 21 Navrooz "Navro'z Bayrami" May 9 Remembrance Day "Xotira va Qadirlash kuni" September 1 Independence Day "Mustaqillik kuni" October 1 Teacher's Day "O'qituvchi va Murabbiylar" December 8 "Constitution Day" Konstitutsiya kuni

Variable date

End of Ramazon Ramazon Hayit Eid al-Fitr 70 days later Qurbon Hayit Eid al-Adha

Cuisine[edit]

Palov Main article: Uzbek cuisine See also: Soviet cuisine Uzbek Cuisine is influenced by local agriculture, as in most nations. There is a great deal of grain farming in Uzbekistan, so breads and noodles are of importance and Uzbek cuisine has been characterized as noodle rich. Mutton is a popular variety of meat due to the abundance of sheep in the country and it is part of various Uzbek dishes. Uzbekistan's signature dish is Palov (Plov or Osh), a main course typically made with rice, pieces of meat, and grated carrots and onions. Oshi Nahor, or morning Plov, is served in the

early morning (between 6 am and 9 am) to large gatherings of guests, typically as part of an ongoing wedding celebration. Other notable national dishes include: Shurpa (Shurva or Shorva), a soup made of large pieces of fatty meat (usually mutton), and fresh vegetables; Norin and Langman, noodle-based dishes that may be served as a soup or a main course; Manti, Chuchvara, and Somsa, stuffed pockets of dough served as an appetizer or a main course; Dimlama (a meat and vegetable stew) and various Kebabs, usually served as a main course. Green tea is the national hot beverage taken throughout the day; teahouses (Chaikhanas) are of cultural importance. The more usual black tea is preferred in Tashkent, both green and black teas are taken daily without milk or sugar. Tea always accompanies a meal, but it is also a drink of hospitality, automatically offered green or black to every guest. Ayran, a chilled yogurt drink, is popular in summer, but does not replace hot tea. The use of alcohol is less widespread than in the west, but wine is comparatively popular for a Muslim nation as Uzbekistan is largely secular. Uzbekistan has 14 wineries, the oldest and most famous being the Khovrenko Winery in Samarkand (est. 1927). The Samarkand Winery produces a range of dessert wines from local grape varieties: Gulyakandoz, Shirin, Aleatiko, and Kabernet likernoe (literally Cabernet dessert wine in Russian). Uzbek wines have received international awards and are exported to Russia and other countries.

Sport[edit]
Main article: Sport in Uzbekistan See also: Uzbekistan at the Olympics, Football in Uzbekistan, and Rugby union in Uzbekistan Uzbekistan is home to former racing cyclist Djamolidine Abdoujaparov. Abdoujaparov has won the points contest in the Tour de France three times, each time winning the coveted green jersey (the green jersey is second only to the yellow jersey).[95] Abdoujaparov was a specialist at winning stages in tours or one-day races when the bunch or peloton would finish together. He would often 'sprint' in the final kilometre and had a reputation as being dangerous in these bunch sprints as he would weave from side to side. This reputation earned him the nickname 'The Terror of Tashkent'. Artur Taymazov won Uzbekistan's first wrestling medal at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games, as well as three gold medals at the 2004, 2008 Summer Olympic Games and 2012 Summer Olympic Games in Men's 120 kg. Ruslan Chagaev is a professional boxer representing Uzbekistan in the WBA. He won the WBA champion title in 2007 after defeating Nikolai Valuev. Chagaev defended his title twice before losing it to Vladimir Klitschko in 2009. Michael Kolganov, sprint canoer, was world champion and won an Olympic bronze in K-1 500meter. Gymnast Alexander Shatilov won a world bronze as an artistic gymnast in floor exercise. Uzbekistan is the home of the International Kurash Association. Kurash is an internationalized and modernized form of the traditional Uzbek fighting art of Kurash.

Football is the most popular sport in Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan's premier football league is the Uzbek League, which features 14 teams since 2010, before 16. The current champions (2012) are Pakhtakor and with 9 Uzbek League titles the team won the most champion titles. The current Player of the Year (2012) is Sanzhar Tursunov. Uzbekistan's football clubs regularly participates in the AFC Champions League and the AFC Cup. Nasaf won AFC Cup in 2011, which is the first international club cup for Uzbek football. Before Uzbekistan's independence in 1991, the country used to be part of the Soviet Union football, rugby union, ice hockey, basketball, and handball national teams. After Uzbekistan got split up from the Soviet Union, Uzbekistan created its own football, rugby union, and futsal national teams. Tennis is also a very popular sport in Uzbekistan, especially after Uzbekistan's independence in 1991. Uzbekistan also has its own Tennis Federation called the "UTF" (Uzbekistan Tennis Federation) that was created in 2002. Uzbekistan also hosts an International WTA tennis tournament called the "Tashkent Open", which is held in Uzbekistan's capital city. This tournament has been held since 1999, and is played on outdoor hard courts. The most notable active players from Uzbekistan are Denis Istomin and Akgul Amanmuradova. Other popular sports in Uzbekistan include judo, team handball, baseball, taekwondo, basketball, and futsal.

Djamolidine Abdoujaparov is the most famous cyclist in Uzbekistan, winning three Tour de France point contests. Abdoujaparov was one of the world's fastest cyclists.

Sergey Lagutin at the 2008 Eneco Tour

Ruslan Chagaev

Denis Istomin at the 2009 US Open

Vitaliy Denisov

See also[edit]

Book: Uzbekistan

Outline of Uzbekistan Index of Uzbekistan-related articles Afghanistan-Uzbekistan Friendship Bridge Agriculture in Uzbekistan

Central Asian Union Cuisine of Uzbekistan Economy of Uzbekistan Human rights in Uzbekistan List of Uzbeks Politics of Uzbekistan President of Uzbekistan Prime Minister of Uzbekistan Public holidays in Uzbekistan Senate of Uzbekistan Supreme Court of Uzbekistan Tourism in Uzbekistan Transport in Uzbekistan Trans-Caspian railway Women in Uzbekistan Geography portal Asia portal Central Asia portal Uzbekistan portal

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Sources[edit]

Environmental Justice Foundation, February 2010, Slave Nation A report exposing the continued use of state-sponsored forced child labour in the cotton fields of Uzbekistan, Anora Mahmudova, AlterNet, May 27, 2005, Uzbekistans Growing Police State (checked 2005-11-08) Manfred Nowak, Radio Free Europe, 2005-06-23, UN Charges Uzbekistan With PostAndijon Torture, Gulnoza Saidazimova, Radio Free Europe, 2005-06-22, Uzbekistan: Tashkent reveals findings on Andijon uprising as victims mourned BBC News, 'Harassed' BBC shuts Uzbek office, 2005-10-26 (checked 2005-11-15)

UNDP/CER/CCI's Public-Private Partnership in Uzbekistan: Problems, Opportunities and Ways of Introduction UNDP & Chamber of Commerce and Industry Export Guide for Uzbekistan IMF, 2005-09-24 Republic of Uzbekistan and the IMF

Printed sources[edit]

Chasing the Sea: Lost Among the Ghosts of Empire in Central Asia by Tom Bissell A Historical Atlas of Uzbekistan by Aisha Khan The Modern Uzbeks From the 14th century to the Present: A Cultural History by Edward A. Allworth Nationalism in Uzbekistan: Soviet Republic's Road to Sovereignty by James Critchlow Odyssey Guide: Uzbekistan by Calcum Macleod and Bradley Mayhew Uzbekistan: Heirs to the Silk Road by Johannes Kalter and Margareta Pavaloi Silk Road to Ruin: Is Central Asia the New Middle East? by Ted Rall Murder in Samarkand: A British Ambassador's Controversial Defiance of Tyranny in the War on Terror by Craig Murray Tamerlane's Children: Dispatches from contemporary Uzbekistan by Robert Rand White Gold: the true cost of cotton, Still in the Fields, and Slave Nation. Printed reports documenting environmental and social abuses in Uzbekistan's cotton fields by the Environmental Justice Foundation

External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Uzbekistan. Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Uzbekistan.

National Information Agency of Uzbekistan Tashkent directory Lower House of Uzbekistan parliament Chief of State and Cabinet Members

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