Uzbekistan Tops Eurasia in International Financing Intake

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Uzbekistan consolidated its position as the undisputed leader in attracting sovereign financing from international financial institutions among all countries of the Eurasian region in 2025. This conclusion is presented in the annual report “Sovereign Financing in the Eurasian Region: Regional Projects and Initiatives of International Financial Institutions,” published by the Eurasian Fund for Stabilization and Development.

According to the report, international financial institutions, development agencies and climate funds approved a total of US$10.3 billion for Eurasian countries in 310 projects over the past year. This was the second-highest result in the past five years, second only to 2024, when total approved financing reached US$12.8 billion across 426 projects.

Uzbekistan received US$4.9 billion, accounting for 47.9% of the region’s total financing volume. This is an all-time record for the country. Funds were primarily allocated to economic policy sectors (US$2.2 billion), transport (US$0.7 billion), and agriculture (US$0.6 billion).

Key multilateral development banks played a central role in financing. The World Bank provided US$3.2 billion to Uzbekistan between 2022 and 2025, the Asian Development Bank US$2.4 billion, and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank US$2.4 billion. The Japan International Cooperation Agency also contributed US$0.5 billion.

Analysts attribute the sharp increase in financing volumes to economic reforms launched in Uzbekistan in 2017. Since then, average annual international financing has grown 2.7 times compared to the 2008–2017 period. Alongside investment loans totaling US$8.3 billion during 2022–2025, the country also attracted US$8.1 billion in stabilization financing to support large-scale structural reforms.

The World Bank and AIIB are jointly financing reform programs worth US$2.1 billion, focused on three key areas: creating competitive markets, improving fiscal risk management, and supporting social inclusion and environmental sustainability. In energy, agriculture, railways and chemical industries, reforms aim to introduce independent regulation and enable greater private sector participation.

Major ongoing investment projects include the reconstruction of the 106.4-kilometer Denov–Darband road worth US$273.9 million with ADB support, designed to connect CAREC international transport corridors; a rural poverty reduction program financed by the Islamic Development Bank worth US$260 million; modernization of irrigation pumping stations across ten regions with EBRD support worth US$250 million; and a student loan sustainability project supported by the World Bank, also worth US$250 million.

In the project pipeline, Uzbekistan also leads the region with planned operations worth US$2 billion, ahead of Kazakhstan (US$1.4 billion) and Armenia (US$1 billion).

Kazakhstan ranked second, attracting US$1.5 billion across 26 projects, mainly in transport infrastructure modernization. The largest approved project is the reconstruction and expansion of the 234-kilometer Aktobe–Ulgaysyn road worth US$510 million, jointly financed by EBRD and AIIB. Leading creditors included EBRD (US$648.8 million), AIIB (US$450 million), and ADB (US$400.5 million).

Armenia recorded 48 sovereign financing operations totaling US$1.1 billion, the second-highest level since 2008. The largest contributions came from ADB (US$250.4 million), followed by the World Bank (US$180.2 million), IMF (US$175 million), and EIB (US$174.3 million). In December 2025, the IMF approved a new 36-month assistance program for Armenia worth about US$175 million.

Kyrgyzstan reached a record level since 2013 with US$981.3 million across 55 operations, while Tajikistan received US$369.6 million across 40 operations.

Overall, Eurasian Fund for Stabilization and Development member states received US$3.9 billion, or 38.9% of total regional financing.

By structure, investment projects accounted for US$7.5 billion across 103 operations. Stabilization support amounted to US$2.5 billion across 17 operations, while technical assistance covered 217 projects worth US$0.3 billion.

The World Bank and the Asian Development Bank jointly maintained leadership among institutions, accounting for 60.2% of total regional financing, each approving around US$3.1 billion. AIIB and EBRD followed with approximately US$1.2 billion each.

Transport remained the largest sector with US$2.7 billion in investment financing, while economic policy and banking sectors reached US$2.9 billion, including US$2.5 billion in program lending for structural reforms.

Key trends include a strong focus on climate-related priorities such as adaptation, decarbonization, and green energy, as well as the growing role of digital transformation across financial systems, public administration, and infrastructure development.