The government of Uzbekistan is keenly aware of the economic benefits of advancing the digitalisation of public and other services. To this end, the President tasked the Central Bank of Uzbekistan (CBU) with developing a remote identification system (RIS) for the country’s banking system. This would not only help entrepreneurs to sustain activity during the Covid-19 crisis and recovery, but also streamline Uzbekistan’s banking services and advance the modernisation of the sector.
The EBRD hosted a webinar on best international practices to guide the CBU in its decision-making on RIS implementation, teaming up with one of the world’s leading e-governance think tanks, Estonia’s e-Governance Academy, to support the Uzbek authorities. The webinar enhanced the CBU’s understanding of its options with regard to remote identification and, in particular, the models best suited to Uzbekistan’s needs. The CBU has subsequently asked for further EBRD assistance in introducing the RIS and this is currently taking place as part of a separate project.
