TASHKENT, June 18. /Dunyo IA/. Katalin Novák, Former President of Hungary (2022–2024), who is participating in the 5^th Tashkent International Investment Forum in the capital of Uzbekistan, shared her views in an interview with a correspondent of Dunyo IA:

— I found this forum very refreshing because there are a lot of young people and many active participants. What I like about this forum so far – of course, it is just the day before the first day – is that there is real activism and interest in listening to others. This is what I find very good, because then, that is my expectation, everybody can bring something home – complete ideas shared by others.

What I spoke about here in the panel discussion is also that we do not need to be forced to choose between family life and professional career. I think many women in Uzbekistan want to have a family and become mothers, but why should they give up this dream if they also want to be successful in their professional careers? I think what the state can do is create an environment where women can feel this freedom of choice.

I very much appreciated that Uzbekistan has also realized that there is huge potential in Uzbek women. If you look at the ratio of women’s participation in labour market of Uzbekistan, you can see there is a huge potential. There is still a room for manoeuvre. I think the Uzbek government has already realized this need.

If you also look at the economic growth of Uzbekistan in the last years, then you can see there is huge potential too. It is very impressive and very attractive for foreign investment. So I very much hope that there will be even more European investment in Uzbekistan. This is your future and our future, actually.

I think that Uzbekistan’s openness to new ideas and readiness to adapt to different challenges is perhaps the most attractive part for European investors. And also, the Uzbek young population is very competitive. That is something we are lacking in Europe and in many parts of Asia as well.