― 1 июня 2026 г.
President Mirziyoyev met with artists and intellectuals
On June 1st, 2026, the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev met with artists and intellectuals and announced comprehensive support and incentives for the sector.
Speaking at the meeting, President Mirziyoyev highlighted the importance of culture and arts in shaping society’s mindset and said that his aim is to resolve the sector’s challenges and bring new life into the creative economy.
Art Associations to be established, Young Talents to be supported
Pursuant to this new action plan, art associations will be established in 21 different disciplines, including theatre, cinema, music and the visual arts. Whilst successful figures will be honoured at the annual ‘National Artists’ Congress’, an ‘Art Investment Fund’ will be established to discover young talents. Through this fund, 100 young people will receive state-funded training abroad every year. Furthermore, a new copyright system will be introduced to fully safeguard intellectual property rights of artists.
Literature and Social Support Initiative
As part of the supportive measures aimed at literature, poets and authors will be commissioned to create at least 50 works every year, 10 of which will be selected and translated into foreign languages with a view to being promoted abroad. Under the social support programme, 1,000 successful cultural and artistic workers will receive free medical treatment each year, 2,000 artists will be provided with state-funded health insurance, and those with 10 years’ service will be offered free holidays at sanatoriums.
Furthermore, from September 1st onwards, salaries of those working in song and dance ensembles will be doubled, whilst the service duration of dancers will be reduced from 20 to 15 years. Composers, meanwhile, will be commissioned by the state to produce at least 20 new works annually in both classical and modern genres.
Free tickets for citizens and tax exemption for events
To increase public access to cultural events, hundreds of thousands of students, civil servants and families in need will be provided with free theatre, cinema and concert tickets each year. Up to 20 per cent of the costs of local concerts and performances will be covered by the budget. Private theatres, cinemas, cultural and arts education institutions, and sponsorship contributions to this sector will be exempt from numerous taxes. Furthermore, the state will cover the production costs of 50 stage productions each year to support private theatres.
Institutionalisation in Cinema and Education
The Özbekfilm studios will be transformed into a national film studio, and half of the box-office income from state-supported films will be retained by the producers and creative team as an incentive. The budget for the “Golden Humo” awards will be increased to 5 billion som.
In the field of education, relevant subjects in schools will be renewed based on the “Arts” curriculum, and the salaries of teachers working in music schools will be brought into line with those of general secondary school teachers. Universities will take on a “dual education” model, with master artists acting as mentors for the students.
At the end of the meeting which also featured the announcement of the establishment of the “Institute for Professional Development and Retraining” within the Ministry of Culture of Uzbekistan to ensure the professional development of sector employees, President Mirziyoyev stressed the importance of national unity and solidarity in the current global climate and listening to the views and suggestions of sector representatives.
