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 recent years, the term “Internet of Things” (IoT) has become one of the most popular in the tech world. It promised to connect billions of devices. The next stage was the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), which brought revolutionary changes to production processes. Today, a new term is coming onto the scene – AIoT (Artificial Intelligence of Things), combining the capabilities of the Internet of Things with the power of AI.
Sixty-eight IT executives from 15 countries, including Brazil, India, USA, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Kazakhstan, and Indonesia participated in the project.
June 2024 was a very dynamic month for AI and data analytics market, marked by significant events, product launches, and industry insights.
Artem Kalivanov, CIO of Beeline Uzbekistan, discussed IT project management in terms of project definition, management models like Waterfall and Agile methodologies, and the importance of Lean in process management.