ISLAMABAD, October 1. /Dunyo IA/. The popular Pakistani publication “Infora News” has published an article titled “Uzbekistan: Raising the Status of Teachers as Part of Education Reform,” reports Dunyo IA correspondent.

According to the publication, Teacher’s Day in Uzbekistan was previously not tied to a specific date, being observed on the first Sunday of October and applying exclusively to teachers at educational institutions.

“Since 1997, it has been celebrated on a fixed date – October 1 – and has been given the status of an official public holiday and a day off. The scope of the holiday was also broadened to include sports coaches, production instructors and other professionals whose work is in one way or another related to passing on knowledge and experience, education or professional mentoring,” “Infora News” writes.

Uzbekistan has ended the practice of involving teachers in cotton harvesting, community improvement and landscaping work, as well as fundraising activities in mahallas. The elimination of forced labor has created broader opportunities for teachers to improve their professional skills.

The author separately emphasizes the important role of decrees and resolutions adopted by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in eliminating forced labor practices, as well as Uzbekistan’s accession to international instruments establishing states’ commitments in this area.

Teachers are provided with a 50 percent discount when using a number of public services. Their children admitted to public higher education institutions are entitled to a 30 percent discount on tuition fees under a contract-based education system.

As noted in the article, more than 46,000 teachers from across Uzbekistan participated this year in the “Teacher of the Year” competition, organized to identify teachers’ potential, promote healthy professional competition, and provide worthy incentives for their work.

Following the competition, 208 participants — one teacher from each district and city of the country — were named winners. Each received a cash prize of $50,000.