How a Tech and Textile Intersection is Accelerating the IT Sector in Uzbekistan
Muzaffar A'zamov, founder of Mato.uz and chairman of the e-commerce Association of Uzbekistan and the Committee on development of information technologies and innovations under the Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Built at the intersection of technology and textiles, Mato.uz has become a project that is accelerating the entire IT sector in Uzbekistan. The platform provides users with essential payment services for export shipments. Mato.uz was founded on Muzaffar A'zamov's belief that both the IT and textile industries would experience significant growth in Uzbekistan in the coming century.
When Mato.uz was created in 2015, there were no Visa payments in the country. However, two years later, the first payment in Uzbekistan was made through the Mato.uz website, which facilitated the first export of textiles to the United States. This success led to the creation of the Association of e-commerce of Uzbekistan and the Committee on the Development of Information Technologies and Innovations under the Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
In the interview, Muzaffar explains how the IT industry is developing in Uzbekistan. He also discusses the opportunities and challenges that tech companies face in the country.
Highlights:
- The banking sector in Uzbekistan has issued over 20 million cards, and the number of users of banking apps has doubled since 2020. This suggests that the e-commerce industry is evolving rapidly. Additionally, the number of legal users has also doubled, indicating an increasing demand for technology among consumers.
- To promote the development and export of IT products, the IT sector is exempt from taxes, and favorable conditions have been created. Moreover, an innovation center called IT Park was established under the Ministry of IT in 2017 to educate young talents and attract them to the tech industry.
- “An aspiring IT leader should have a big, ambitious goal that motivates them to take steps towards it every day. For me, the goal is to build the number one economy in the e-commerce industry of Uzbekistan”.
The interview with Muzaffar A'zamov is part of the Top 100 IT leaders project. Join the community of Global CIO and take part in the professional digital contest.
In today's era of digitalisation, businesses in all sectors are facing new challenges. Competition is intensifying, customers are becoming more demanding and technology is evolving at breakneck speed. To remain competitive, businesses need to change. And one of the key steps along the way may be migrating to the cloud.
The right choice of a business partner is one of the main tasks of any business. The quality of goods or services that the company receives, as well as its reputation, depend on the reliability of the supplier. To make the process transparent and convenient, scoring models for assessing reliability come to the rescue.
Summer is coming to an end, but life in the analytics field is bustling. New vendor announcements, promising projects, and the pervasive penetration of AI into all areas of our lives are paving the way for the upcoming business season.
Maksim Karankevich, Director of Data and Digital Transformation, Ultramar, in his presentation shared his experience of implementing a cellular-based industrial radio network.