History of creation
2019 July
Director of the Agency for Development of the Pharmaceutical Industry Sardor Kariev at a press conference on Friday, July 12, announced the creation of a pharmaceutical cluster.
The cluster will be located near Tashkent on an area of 50-60 hectares. There will be a new pharmaceutical University, which will train personnel in demand in the field, for example, biotechnologists, microbiologists, toxicologists. The University will be created together with a foreign university in order to learn from its experience.
It is also planned to move the Center for Expertise and Standardization of Medicines there, which will ensure the quality control of medicines.
As the Director of the Agency Kariev noted, it is planned to locate scientific institutes scattered throughout the country on the territory of the pharmaceutical cluster, build a new building for them and equip it so that scientists can develop original drugs. Thus, it will turn out that on one territory there will be a university where personnel are trained, a quality control center, and there will be drug development institutes nearby. On the same territory there will be an industrial zone where local companies will be able to build factories.
2019 August
In the period from August 12 to 16, within the framework of the business forum in Osong, Incheon, there was organized the visit of the Uzbek delegation to the Republic of Korea. Under the leadership of the Deputy Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan, L.Sh. Kudratov, the issue of holding the first meeting of the working group on the development of strategic partnership in the field of pharmaceuticals was agreed, during which it is planned to sign an agreement between the Ministries of health of the two countries and the adoption of a joint roadmap for the development of the pharmaceutical cluster in the Tashkent region.
In the period from 19 to 26 August, a delegation of specialists headed by the Director of the Medical Innovation Fund (KBIOHealth) of the Republic of Korea visited Uzbekistan. The visit of the delegation was organized by the Agency for Development of the Pharmaceutical Industry under the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Uzbekistan in cooperation with the Ministry of Health and Social Security of the Republic of Korea. The purpose of the visit was to study the issue of creating an innovative pharmaceutical cluster on the territory of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
It is important to note that the Korean side has been identified as a strategic partner in the implementation of this project and on the basis of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Osong Medical Innovation Fund (KBIOHealth), the company's successful experience in creating a pharmaceutical cluster in the Korean city of Osong will also be applied in Uzbekistan.
2020 April
On April 17, by President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Sh.M. Mirziyoyev via videoconference was given a start to the construction of an innovative scientific and production pharmaceutical cluster “Tashkent Pharma Park” in Zangiata district of Tashkent region.
2020 May
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On May 6, a video conference was held with the participation of Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan S.U. Umurzakov and Deputy Prime Minister-Minister of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Korea Hong Nam-Ki.
The agenda of the discussion included current issues and prospects for investment, trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian cooperation in the light of the bilateral agreements reached following the high-level visits. They stressed the priority of continuing systematic work in the current economic environment in order to minimize the risks of delays in the implementation of common projects and initiatives, for which the Working Group, headed by the Deputy Ministers of foreign economic authorities of the two countries, will provide targeted assistance to the initiators of investment projects and promptly resolve emerging issues.
In this context, special attention was paid to supporting the implementation of the project to create a pharmaceutical cluster “Tashkent Pharma Park” in Tashkent region - the Korean side will intensify work to attract leading Korean companies to implement joint projects in the cluster, as well as the issue of accelerating the opening of financing the part of the project by Eximbank of Korea.
2020 July
On July 6, the Eximbank of the Republic of Korea signed a contract with a consortium of Korean consultants from “Chung-Ang” University and construction company “Aum&Lee Architects&Associates” to develop a feasibility study for the project “Creation of research and educational components of the innovative research and production pharmaceutical cluster “Tashkent Pharma Park” (Stage 1).
On July 8, during the visit to Seoul of the delegation of Uzbekistan, headed by Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade S.U. Umurzakov was held the meeting with the Chairman of the Eximbank of the Republic of Korea, Bang Moon-kyu. The meeting was devoted to discussing the dynamics of the implementation of joint projects, as well as prospects for expanding the bank's project portfolio in Uzbekistan.
Along with the agreement of the Parties to intensify joint work to accelerate the signing of loan agreements for a number of projects already approved by the bank in 2019, they also discussed speeding up the procedure for preparing feasibility studies, selecting consultants and contractors to start construction work on projects under implementation, including the creation of the “Tashkent Pharma Park” pharmaceutical cluster.
The South Korean side also expressed interest in further expanding financial and technical cooperation with Uzbekistan, therefore there will be launched a joint elaboration of the agreement between the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade and the EDCF Fund under the Eximbank of the Republic of Korea on cooperation in the field of economic development for 2021-2023, which will provide an increase in the program of concessional financing from 500 million to 1 billion dollars.
2020 September
On August 31, a delegation of Korean consultants arrived with their first visit to the Republic of Uzbekistan. In the period from August 31 to September 14, the Korean consultants of the “Chung-Ang” and “Aum&Lee Architects&Associates” consortium started discussing a number of issues, in particular, regarding construction work on the territory of the innovative scientific and production pharmaceutical cluster “Tashkent Pharma Park”. During the trip, visits to the cluster's construction site and factories of the country's leading pharmaceutical companies were organized.
On September 12, a final meeting was held in the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade under the leadership of the First Deputy Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan L.Sh. Kudratov. In order to accelerate the implementation of the project by completing the feasibility study of the project before the end of the year there were made suggestions to the foreign side.
Following the results of the first visit of the Korean consultants, the Protocol of the meeting (Aide Memoire) was signed defining the issues of construction and equipment of academic buildings, research laboratories, ICT center, as well as the specialization of the university, the number and directions of faculties, the curriculum and the preliminary student’s intake plan.
On September 29, online negotiations were held between the Initiator of the project, specialists of the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Head Office of the Eximbank of Korea on accelerating the implementation of the project. There also was discussed unresolved issues following the first visit of the Korean consultants.
October
In the period from October 12 to 26, the second visit of the consultants of the Eximbank of Korea took place. During this visit, the main parameters of the feasibility study were agreed, including the cost of construction of all components, the volume of construction, the cost and the list of necessary equipment and inventory. Following the results of the second visit, the corresponding Protocol of the meeting (Aide Memoire) was signed.
On October 30, at the Second International Forum of the Northern Economic Cooperation in the format of online summit in Seoul, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Sh.M. Mirziyoyev proposed to create a pharmacluster with South Korean companies for the development of vaccines and serums and to hold an International Expert Forum on nuclear Disarmament.
The Head of country proposed to continue working together, including through the development of effective vaccines and serums, systems for rapid and accurate diagnosis of diseases on the basis of a pharmaceutical cluster created jointly with Korean companies.
2021 January
On January 10, a working group led by Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan S.U. Umurzakov visited the territory of the innovative scientific and production pharmaceutical cluster “Tashkent Pharma Park” in Zangiata district of Tashkent region. During the visit, practical issues of components construction, supply of communications and infrastructure of the cluster were discussed.
Along with representatives of ministries and authorities, the event was also attended by representatives of foreign investors from Turkey, India, the Czech Republic and other countries, whose investment projects are planned to be implemented in the industrial zone of the cluster.
On January 25, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade of Uzbekistan S.U. Umurzakov held negotiations with Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economy and Finance of South Korea Hong Nam-ki in a video conference format. The Deputy Prime Ministers of both countries discussed issues and prospects of investment, trade, economic, financial and technical cooperation in the light of the bilateral agreements reached following the high-level visits, as well as joint events held in 2020.
In a separate order, the issues of cooperation with the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) were considered in accordance with the new program of cooperation with Uzbekistan for 2021-2023 with a total cost of 1 billion US dollars, within which priority projects have already been identified, as well as mechanisms for cooperation on the implementation of joint projects, including the construction of the “Tashkent Pharma Park” pharmaceutical cluster in Zangiata district of Tashkent region. The South Korean side expressed its readiness to speed up the processes of their coordination in order to move on to their practical implementation in the near future.
On January 28, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Sh.M. Mirziyoyev met with President of the Republic of Korea Moon Jae-in via videoconference.
The agenda of the negotiations included the development of bilateral relations, a special strategic partnership, as well as regional cooperation and cooperation between the two countries within the framework of international organizations. The Presidents of both countries discussed the prospects for deepening the political dialogue, implementing specific projects and programs in the energy sector, oil and gas complex, chemistry and petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, processing industry, agriculture, infrastructure modernization, transport and logistics, tourism and others.
The fruitful cooperation with the Found for Economic Development and Cooperation (EDCF) and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) to promote bilateral priority programs was highly appreciated.
2021 February
On February 25, the Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in Seoul organized negotiations via videoconference between the management of the “Tashkent Pharma Park” Directorate, representatives of the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade of Uzbekistan and the Director of the Projects Department of the Fund for Economic Development and Cooperation (EDCF) of the Eximbank of Korea, Ha Won-suk.
Since the pharmaceutical industry is a strategic area of bilateral cooperation, the priority of this project has been emphasized. In this regard, the consultants of the Eximbank of Korea are working on the completion of the design and technical documentation in an accelerated manner. In turn, the Uzbek side expressed interest in the early preparation of bilateral documents for signing and the start of practical work on the construction of the corresponding facilities of “Tashkent Pharma Park”.
2021 April
On April 11, at the Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in Seoul, Ambassador Vitaly Fen held an official meeting with the Director of the EDCF Fund of the Eximbank of Korea, Son Seung-Ho. During the meeting, a number of practical issues related to the implementation of major bilateral projects were discussed.
The project on “Creation of research and educational components of the innovative scientific and production pharmaceutical cluster “Tashkent Pharma Park” was noted separately. Emphasizing the priority of this project for the economy of Uzbekistan, the ambassador asked to speed up the procedures for preparing technical documents for the signing of the Agreement in the near future.
On April 16 and 30, regular and scheduled negotiations were held in the video conference format to discuss the Korean version of the feasibility study of the project with the participation of representatives of the Agency on Development of the Pharmaceutical Industry, consultants of the Eximbank of Korea and representatives of the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade as the supervising authority of this project.
2021 May
On May 11, the Ambassador of Uzbekistan Vitaly Fen met with the newly appointed Park Il Young, General Director of the Bureau of International Economic Relations of the Ministry of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Korea. During the meeting, discussions were held on topical issues of strengthening financial, technical and investment cooperation, the implementation of important projects at the expense of the Economic Development and Cooperation Fund (EDCF) of the Eximbank of South Korea. Director General Park Il Young, who previously oversaw South Korea's cooperation with foreign countries within the framework of the Fund for Economic Development and Cooperation (EDCF), noted that Uzbekistan is an important and priority state for the Republic of Korea in terms of cooperation with EDCF.
During the meeting, the issues of speeding up the procedures for approving and preparing technical documentation for projects implemented with the involvement of concessional financing from EDCF were discussed in detail. Among them, projects for the creation of a pharmaceutical cluster “Tashkent Pharma Park” and a multidisciplinary modern specialized medical center for adults are highlighted separately. Park Il Young informed about the special control by the leadership of his ministry for the timely implementation of projects in Uzbekistan.
2021 June
On June 7 and 10, video conferences were held with Korean consultants on a routine basis. During the discussion of the feasibility study of the project of the Korean colleagues, the optimization of the cost of expenses was agreed and some issues regarding the components of the educational part were clarified.
On June 17, at the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan, First Deputy Minister L.Sh. Kudratov held a meeting with In-kyu Cho, the head of the representative office of the Eximbank of Korea.
Within the framework of the negotiations, issues related to the implementation of current joint projects were discussed, in particular, the creation of research and educational components of the innovative scientific and production pharmaceutical cluster “Tashkent Pharma Park” (stage 1).
An agreement was reached to work together to accelerate the implementation of these projects, which will further help in the timely implementation of the second stage of the project “Creation of research and educational components of the innovative scientific and production pharmaceutical cluster “Tashkent Pharma Park”.
On June 29 and 30, scheduled negotiations were organized in the format of video conference with the participation of Korean consultants, representatives of the EDCF Foundation of the Eximbank of Korea, the Embassy of Uzbekistan in Korea, project supervisors from the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade and responsible executors of the project Initiator. During the discussion of the Korean version of the feasibility study of the project, the optimization of construction and equipment cost of the components of the educational part of the project was achieved. Further, in the course of negotiations between the specialists of the EDCF Foundation and the ministry, it was decided to sign the Protocol of Agreements by the end of July this year.
2021 July
On July 6, the last video meeting with the Korean consultants was held. During the negotiations, a short final report was presented by the Korean side and the main parameters of the feasibility study of the project were finally fixed. The previously achieved optimization of the cost of construction and equipping the components of the educational part of the project was included in the draft of Minutes of Discussion. The document is scheduled for signing by the end of July this year.