On September 16, 2018, the Consulate General of the Republic of Uzbekistan in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in cooperation with Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry held a briefing on “Investment and tourism potential of Uzbekistan”.

The event was attended by senior officials of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Saudi businessmen, representatives of travel companies and a number of leading mass media. A group of businessmen from Uzbek diaspora was also invited.

In his speech, Vice Chairman of Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry Sheikh Zeyad bin Bassam Al Bassam welcomed the reforms in Uzbekistan in all spheres, including in investment and tourism fields, which offer new opportunities for foreign investors, especially Saudi Arabian business people who want to invest in Uzbekistan economy. Vice Chairman of Jeddah CCI paid special attention to the rich history of Uzbekistan, its place and role in formation of Islamic civilization, the natural wealth of Uzbekistan, its economic potential, emphasizing the traditional hospitality of the country’s people.

Consul General of Uzbekistan in Jeddah Sirojiddin Shamsutdinov informed the participants about the ongoing reforms in the country under the leadership of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, in particular the preferences granted to entrepreneurs, including foreign investors, as well as conditions created for tourists. He also noted that since July of this year, citizens of Saudi Arabia, like a number of other countries, can receive an electronic visa.

Information about free economic, industrial and tourism zones, opportunity for foreign entrepreneurs to freely invest in promising projects in the fields of agriculture, energy, construction, pharmaceuticals, tourism, heavy and light industry aroused a great interest among participants.

An important news for the audience became the announcement of the forthcoming opening of Tashkent – Jeddah – Tashkent flight, which is expected to begin in October this year. As it was emphasized, regular flights are one of the opportunities created by the government of Uzbekistan for investors and travelers.

Then Abdulmunjid Koriev, representative of the touristic company “Shosh Contact Travel”, informed about the tourism potential of Uzbekistan. As it has been noted, there are all kinds of services for tourists today in Uzbekistan, so that guests can relax from the first days to the end of their trip to Uzbekistan. Special attention was paid to the wide opportunities in the field of family tourism.

The participants also watched the videos “Welcome to Uzbekistan” and “Uzbek dish” and tried the best dishes of national cuisine.