About GEN in Uzbekistan

The Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN) began operating in Uzbekistan in 2017 when it partnered with the Association of International Business and Technologies (AMBiT) to launch its flagship program, Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW). The inaugural campaign that November included events in Tashkent, Ferghana, and Samarkand organized by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Uzbekistan Youth Union. From the outset, the campaign brought together the business community, government bodies, and academic institutions, signaling Uzbekistan’s growing commitment to building a modern entrepreneurial ecosystem.

GEW quickly became a national platform for entrepreneurs, ecosystem builders, and policymakers. The next year, in 2018, the campaign involved 50 partner organizations, 50 events, and 5,000 participants across the country. The Youth Union’s Day of Business in Tashkent, which counted 700+ participants, and Business for Women emerged as anchor events. The campaign continued to expand in 2019, and was incorporated into the state program for entrepreneurship. This supported its extension to additional cities, including Bukhara and Karshi, and the involvement of international experts on entrepreneurship and business education.

The 2020 campaign was conducted entirely online due to the global pandemic and featured more than 40 webinars on the theme “Entrepreneurial Education – from Idea to Implementation with experts from all over the world, including Germany, Japan and the United States. In 2021, TEAM University emerged as a hub of Tashkent’s fast-evolving startup scene and it organized GEW events on rural development, corporate social responsibility, tourism and hospitality. In each of the following years, TEAM University has held series of panel discussions and seminars led by founders, investors, and government leaders on entrepreneurship and digital innovation.

GEN provides year-round support for Uzbek founders through Startup Huddle – a peer-driven, mentor-supported program that helps local entrepreneurs sharpen strategy, build sustainability, and prepare to scale. In addition, masterclasses and educational programming organized by GEN’s academic partners – Amity University, TEAM University, Westminster International University in Tashkent (WIUT) support and connect new founders to the ecosystem. More than a dozen venture capital funds currently operate in Uzbekistan, and GEN connects local investors to the global investor community through GEN Invest and its Global Business Angels Network.

Government engagement is a defining feature of GEN’s work in Uzbekistan. The Ministry of Innovative Development participates in GEN’s policy community as an active member of Startup Nations. The Ministry of Digital Technologies, the Ministry of Tourism, and IT Park Uzbekistan, the country’s state-backed technology incubator, participate in GEW by hosting events. GEN supports policy developments that reduce barriers to founders and investors, including the IT Visa program and the broader Local2Global initiatives.

Uzbekistan is an active participant in GEN’s startup competition. GEN competitions offer cash prizes as well as training, mentorship, and global investor exposure. In partnership with IT Park Uzbekistan, GEN offers the Entrepreneurship World Cup (EWC). Four Uzbek startups have advanced to the global Top 100 and pitched for a share of the U.S. $1 million dollar prize pool at the Global Finals: Agroport Jizzakh in 2019, IMAN, a halal finance platform for merchants, shoppers, and investors in 2020, LLC Smartdeals in 2021, and Alif Uzbekistan, led by CEO Sayyod Barotov, in 2022. At the national level, the competition draws a growing pipeline of founders, with BeautifyUz, led by founder Nigora Akilova, taking the top prize at Uzbekistan’s 2024 national finals.

GEN has become a hub of the ecosystem through the relationships it has developed with key Uzbek ecosystem stakeholders. These include AMBiT, Amity University, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, IT Park Uzbekistan, the Ministry of Digital Technologies, the Ministry of Innovative Development, the Ministry of Tourism, TEAM University, the Uzbekistan Youth Union, Westminster International University in Tashkent. These GEN’s partners have formed a coalition that has carried GEN’s programming from a single-week celebration in 2017 to a year-round platform spanning capital, education, and policy.

As Uzbekistan’s startup ecosystem continues its rapid ascent, GEN’s mission is to deepen the connections between Uzbek founders and ecosystem builders with the world’s leading entrepreneurship communities. By connecting them to global capital, knowledge, and markets, GEN is helping to position Tashkent and Uzbekistan’s emerging hubs as recognized centers of high-impact entrepreneurship in Central Asia and beyond.