Tashkent, September 27, 2016 – The new World Bank Director for Central Asia, Lilia Burunciuc, visited Tashkent for an introductory meeting with the Uzbekistan Government.
During the meeting with First Deputy Prime Minister Rustam Azimov, Ms. Burunciuc confirmed that the World Bank remains a reliable partner of Uzbekistan in helping the country achieve its goal to become an upper middle-income country by 2030 by increasing the economy’s competitiveness, improving the business environment, and developing its infrastructure to support rapid job creation.
As part of her visit to Uzbekistan, Ms. Burunciuc visited project sites of the Health System Improvement and Horticulture Development Pilot projects, supported by the World Bank.
Appointed on August 1, 2016 as the World Bank Director for Central Asia, Ms. Burunciuc will lead the policy dialogue with governments on various aspects of development. Ms. Burunciuc joined the World Bank in 1996 and has held a number of leadership positions in different countries and regions including Central Asia. Prior to taking the current assignment, she served as the Manager in the Operations Policy and Country Services department of the World Bank in Washington, D.C.
In Uzbekistan, the World Bank Group has been a long term partner, providing advice on improving the country’s economic and financial management. The new Country Partnership Framework for Uzbekistan for 2016-2020, discussed by the Board of Directors in June 2016, focuses on three priority areas: private sector growth, agricultural competitiveness and cotton sector modernization, and improved public service delivery.
