“Иқтисодиёт ва инновацион технологиялар” илмий электрон журнали. № 2, март-апрель, 2019 йил
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ANALYSIS OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF TOURISM IN UZBEKISTAN
Professor A. Kucharov,
Associate Professor Kh. Ochilova
Tashkent State University of Economics
E-mail:
Abstract
:
This article reveals aspects of the development of tourism in Uzbekistan. As we
know, the republic has opportunities for the development of international and domestic tourism, as
evidenced by the many objects of material and cultural heritage, natural and climatic conditions,
unique national cuisine and unsurpassed hospitality of the Uzbek people attract travelers. The
purpose of this study is to analyze the development of international tourism in Uzbekistan.
Key words
:
international tourism, service, opportunities of tourism, recreation, infrastructure
Introduction
In recent years in Uzbekistan, along with traditional forms of travel, ecotourism,
geotourism, agritourism, medical tourism and gastronomic tourism have also developed.
Uzbekistan places particular emphasis on the modernization of the tourism industry, the
development and improvement of the regulatory framework for the sustainable
development of the industry, and the organization of tourist services in accordance with
international standards. Government policy is aimed at developing tourism, so that this
area in the future should become one of the drivers for accelerating the integrated
development of regions and their infrastructure, helping to solve such important socio-
economic tasks as creating hundreds of thousands of new jobs, ensuring diversification
and accelerated development of regions increasing incomes, the level and quality of life of
the population, increasing the volume of foreign exchange earnings, improving the image
and investment attractiveness of the country. The average annual growth rate of foreign
visitors to 2016 over the past five years was 8%. In 2017, this figure is 32.7% more than in
2016. For eleven months of 2018, the number of foreign tourists exceeded the figures for
the same period in 2017 by almost 2 times.
The preferences and expectations of tourists were studied by questioning. The results
of the survey show that tourists come to Uzbekistan, having sufficient information, a
certain motivation and with purposeful aspiration. Visitors showed high interest in
historical tourist tours and visits to museums, galleries, excursions, cultural events, visits to
the countryside, walking / hiking, shopping and ecotourism. The majority of tourists are
satisfied with the general quality of the standards of accommodation facilities, tourist
products, transport services, food and overall quality of service, and also feel safe during
the trip. Most tourists intend to visit Uzbekistan again within 5 years.
Currently, tourism is one of the leading sectors of the global economy. Therefore,
Uzbekistan places particular emphasis on the modernization of the tourism industry, the
development and improvement of the regulatory framework for the sustainable
development of the industry, and the organization of tourist services in accordance with
international standards. During the years of independence, significant actions were
implemented in Uzbekistan in terms of the development of this sphere with the
preservation and enhancement of the historical and cultural heritage of the people, the
“Иқтисодиёт ва инновацион технологиялар” илмий электрон журнали. № 2, март-апрель, 2019 йил
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revival of national traditions and customs, restoration and arrangement of the country's
attractions.
From the first years of independence, Uzbekistan has been actively increasing
cooperation with international organizations, and regularly comes up with initiatives to
deepen cooperation in the field of tourism.
The current trend of the tourism industry confirms the need to study the
prerequisites, system analysis of the dynamics of tourism development, identifying
preferences and expectations of tourists, timely correction and modernization of the
system of measures, taking into account the existing realities and prospects, which served
as the basis for this study
Materials and methods
For the analysis of the prerequisites and dynamics of the development of inbound
tourism in Uzbekistan, information from official sources, statistical reporting data of the
State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan for the development of tourism for 2015-
2017 were used.
To identify preferences and expectations of foreign tourists from abroad, a survey
was conducted. For questioning tourists, some fragments (elements) of the questionnaire
developed by the State Statistics Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the State
Tourism Development Committee of Uzbekistan were used based on the consultations of
an expert from the UNWTO. This questionnaire was previously tested and used in
Uzbekistan to carry out such studies. The survey was conducted among foreign tourists
from foreign countries who arrived in the Kashkadarya region by railway transport (the
route of the train “Afrosiyab” Tashkent-Karshi) for the period 15-25 August 2018.
Literature review
Studies on tourism issues appeared in the second half of the 20th century. Questions
of the conceptual apparatus, theoretical and methodological nature on the problems of
tourism and tourist activities are covered in the works of V.I. Azara, M.B. Birzhakova [1],
I.V. Zorin, A.C. Kuskova, E.V. Listvy, V.L. Odintsova, Yu.S. Putrika, B.C. Senina.The works of
Panov I.N. [2], Fowler, B. [3], Balaeva A., Predvoditeleva M. [4], Veprentsev V.[5],
Dumazedier J. [6], Kozielski J. [7] are devoted to the problems of the development of
international tourism. A significant contribution to the study of regional development and
promotion of international tourism at the regional level made their work: , Mac Cannell,
D.[8], Rojek Ch.[9] and Toffler A. [10]. In addition, I would like to mention the research of
Kanevsky I., Kuznetsova O. and Chirkina V., addressed to the role issue state in the
development of tourism. Insufficient knowledge of modern tourism, additional economic
studies are needed that will reveal the place of tourism in the domestic service sector,
identify the signs, current problems and the most significant factors of its development, as
well as determine the most comprehensive structure of national tourism
Data collecting, materials and methods
For the survey, students (a total of 5 students) of the Tashkent State University of
Economics were recruited as interviewers, as well as responsible employees of the Tourism
Development Department of the Kashkadarya region (3 people in total) as supervisors. To
ensure the quality of research, clarification of the goals and objectives of the survey for
interviewers and supervisors training was organized.
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The survey was conducted among foreign visitors who traveled to Uzbekistan, who
stayed in the Samarkand region for more than one night and less than one month and did
not have a goal to work in Uzbekistan. A total of 255 respondents were involved in the
survey process. The survey was conducted at the railway stations of the cities of
Samarkand.
Analysis of results
An important milestone in the history of tourism in Uzbekistan was the entry of the
republic in 1993 into the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). The presence of more
than seven thousand objects of the material and cultural heritage of different eras and
civilizations, including the historical centers of Bukhara, Khiva, Samarkand and Shahrisabz,
included in the UNESCO World Heritage List of UNESCO testify to the highest potential of
Uzbekistan. The world-famous historical monuments, modern cities, the unique nature of
Uzbekistan, the unique national cuisine, as well as the unsurpassed hospitality of the
Uzbek people attract travelers.
In the framework of cooperation with the UNWTO in 1994, the Samarkand
Declaration on Tourism along the Silk Road was adopted by 19 countries of the world.
In 20.08.1999, the Law No. 831-I “On Tourism” was enacted by the Decree of the Oliy
Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan. The purpose of this Law is the legal regulation of
relations in the field of tourism, the development of the market of tourist services, as well
as the protection of the rights and legitimate interests of tourists and subjects of tourist
activities.
In 1999, the Khiva Declaration on Tourism and the Preservation of Cultural Heritage
was adopted, supported by UNWTO, UNESCO and the Council of Europe. In 2002, the
Bukhara Declaration on Tourism along the Silk Road, which emphasizes the benefits of
sustainable tourism and identifies concrete steps to promote cultural and ecological
tourism in this direction. In recognition of the special place of the republic in the global
tourism industry in 2004 in Samarkand, a regional UNWTO office was opened to
coordinate tourism development on the Silk Road. Today, such an office exists only in two
countries - in Japan and Uzbekistan. The main function of the office is to designate
directions in the development of not only regional, but also international tourism.
In Uzbekistan, a new stage of significant progress in the field of international tourism
began from the beginning of 2017. In 2018, a visa-free regime was established for citizens
of Israel, Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Turkey, Japan, Tajikistan
and France. In addition, the procedure for issuing visas to citizens of 39 countries has been
simplified.
The efforts of the leadership of the Republic of tourism infrastructure in recent years
raised to a fairly high level. The measures taken to support and protect the private sector
contributed to the increase in the number of tourist organizations and hotel facilities.
There are 1,667 tourist organizations successfully operating in the country, including 989
tour operators and 869 hotel facilities. An extensive network of hotels with more than
25,000 beds meets modern international standards. Thanks to the truly extensive work on
the construction and reconstruction of infrastructure facilities in Uzbekistan, 11 airports
received the status of international harbors. Modern comfortable airplanes consisting of
Boeing and Airbus airliners operate regular flights to more than 40 cities in Europe, Asia,
the Middle East and America. Tourists visiting Uzbekistan have the opportunity to get to
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the sights of the republic and through railway transport. So, besides the usual and high-
speed trains, high-speed trains “Afrosiab” produced by the Spanish company “Talgo” run
daily between Tashkent, Samarkand, Shakhrisabz and Bukhara, which significantly
improved the quality of guest service and reduced the trip time.
In recent years, major investment projects have been implemented for the
development of tourist infrastructure, including the opening of the Lotte City Hotel
Tashkent Palace and Hyatt Regency Tashkent brand hotels in Tashkent, the creation of
cultural and entertainment parks in Andijan, Urgench, Tashkent, the opening of railway
line "Angren-Pap."
In recent years, new types of travel, including ecological tourism, have been actively
introduced in Uzbekistan. The presence in the republic of reserves, national parks,
nurseries, wildlife reserves, natural monuments, biosphere reserve makes ecotourism in a
very promising direction. In Uzbekistan, geotourism, medical tourism, mountaineering and
rafting have also developed. Recreation areas and comfortable infrastructure facilities are
being built in the regions. In the sports and recreation centers "Chimgan", "Beldersay" and
"Charvak" the necessary conditions are created for practicing alpine skiing and other
winter sports, where mountain trails of different types are built with a length of 300 to 3
thousand meters. There is a cable car here. In Uzbekistan, the gastronomic direction of
tourism is also gaining popularity, the development of which allowed to make pilaf and
other national dishes a recognizable brand of the country.
Significant role in ensuring the accelerated development of the tourism sector of
Uzbekistan, the formation and maintenance of the country's image on the world market
are played by major events regularly held in the country. One of the most important
annual events is the Tashkent International Tourism Fair "Tourism on the Silk Road." Today
it is the largest forum in Central Asia where industry professionals meet, negotiate in
various formats, including business-to-business, the Hosted Buyers program is being
implemented for buyers of the national tourist product, and conferences are being held on
topical issues of the development of the tourism industry in Uzbekistan and the world
generally. Representatives of our country also regularly participate in international fairs
and exhibitions held abroad in order to present the tourist potential of the republic.
Participation in them allows you to stay abreast of the latest trends in the global tourism
market, enter into business contracts, and develop cooperation with foreign partners.
The state policy in this direction is aimed at the development of tourism, so that this
area in the future should become one of the drivers for the accelerated integrated
development of the regions and their infrastructure, to contribute to the solution of such
important socio-economic tasks as the creation of hundreds of thousands of new jobs,
ensuring diversification and accelerated regional development, increasing incomes, the
level and quality of life of the population, increasing the volume of foreign exchange
earnings, improving the image and investment attractiveness STI country.
The State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan for the Development of Tourism
has been tasked to ensure, together with the relevant ministries and departments, an
increase in the number of tourists in all promising areas of tourism and the volume of real
export of tourist services at least twice in the next 5 years.
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For the period 2015-2017, the export of tourist services grew by 33% and amounted
to USD 546.9 million in 2017, and for 9 months of 2018 - USD 773.4 million, exceeding the
figures of 2017 in total by 41%.
The result of the measures taken by the state, in the direction of tourism, is an
increase in tourists arriving in the republic. Thus, according to the State Committee for the
Development of Tourism of the Republic of Uzbekistan, over 2 million people from
different parts of the world visit the country annually. The number of arriving foreign
visitors to Uzbekistan is growing at a high rate every year. The average annual growth rate
of foreign visitors to 2016 over the past five years was 8%. In 2017, 2,690 thousand tourists
entered the Republic of Uzbekistan. This figure is 32.7% more compared to 2016, when the
number of tourist arrivals was 2,027 thousand people (Source: Analysis by the State
Committee of Tourism).
As the data presented in Table 1 for eleven months (January-November) of 2018
shows, the number of foreign tourists was 4,896,397 people and exceeded the figures for
the same period in 2017 by almost 2 times - by 94.8% (Table 1).
Table 1.
Regions of arrival of tourists entering the Republic of Uzbekistan
(for the 11 months of 2017-2018)
[11]
Regions
11 months 2017
11 months 2018
Total
In% to total
Total
In% to total
CIS countries
2 342317
93,2%
4 590740
93,8%
Foreign
countries
171238
6,8%
305657
6,2%
Drove just
2 513555
4 896397
The geography of foreign guests is wide. At the same time, the number of tourists
from neighboring countries traditionally prevailed in the structure of arriving tourists. This
phenomenon continues to persist as before - the share of tourists from the CIS countries
for 11 months of 2017–2018. Amounted to 93.2% and 93.8%, respectively. The share of
tourists from non-CIS countries during this period was only 6.8% and 6.2%, respectively.
The number of tourists from the CIS countries for 11 months of 2018 amounted to4
590 740 people and exceeded on average the figures for the same period of 2017 by 1.9
times (Table 2). The increase in the number of tourists who have entered is noted from
almost all CIS countries. The largest growth for 11 months of 2018 compared to the same
period of 2017 was from Armenia (+143.4 times), the Republic of Moldova (+133.3 times),
Ukraine (+15.5 times), Tajikistan ( +5.0 times) and Turkmenistan (+3.4 times). The absolute
number of visitors, who entered the Republic of Uzbekistan for 11 months of 2018. The
leading positions are occupied by the countries of Central Asia - Kazakhstan (2,124,631),
Tajikistan (984,804), Kyrgyzstan (959976), Turkmenistan (146,348) and the Russian
Federation (343,128).
The share of tourists from non-CIS countries during this period was only 6.8% and
6.2%, respectively.
In recent years, there has been a significant positive trend in the number of visitors
entering the Republic of Uzbekistan from non-CIS countries. The number of tourists from
non-CIS countries for 11 months of 2018 was 305,657 people and exceeded on average the
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figures for the same period of 2017 (1,71238) by 1.8 times (Table 3). For the period under
review, the growth in the number of tourists who entered has been observed from almost
all foreign countries that have traditional tourist ties with Uzbekistan, with the exception
of Iran (-15.1%). Of the far-abroad countries, Uzbekistan is especially popular with citizens
of Turkey, Germany, France, Italy, the Republic of Korea, Japan, China, Malaysia, India and
the United States. The most significant increase in tourist flow in the first 11 months of
2018 compared to the same period in 2017 was from the United States (+8.3 times), Italy
(+3 times), United Kingdom (+2.6 times), Israel ( +2.6 times), Germany (2.5 times) and
France (+2.4 times). According to the number of visitors, who entered the Republic of
Uzbekistan for 11 months of 2018. The first place was occupied by Turkey (37928). Also, a
substantial number of visitors came from China (29,736), the Republic of Korea (25,634),
India (19,161), Germany (17,699) and Japan (16,487).
Citizens from 8 countries participated in this study. As the data presented in Table 4
shows, the number of visitor respondents did not differ much by country, which is
explained by the group character of the entries, i.e. the formation of an organized group of
tourists entering Uzbekistan. (Table 2).
Table 2.
Citizenship of respondents - visitors who entered the Samarkand region of the Republic
of Uzbekistan from foreign countries for 15-25 August 2018[11]
Countries
Numbers
%
Turkey
33
12,9
The Republic of Korea
23
9,1
China
32
12,5
India
30
11,8
Germany
33
12,9
Italy
35
13,7
France
38
14,9
Israel
31
12,2
Total
255
100
Thus, the intensive development of the tourism industry in Uzbekistan, including
respect for the historical and cultural heritage, the creation of infrastructure that fully
meets international standards, and the strengthening of international relations will turn
our region into one of the most visited countries in the world. Further, in order to ascertain
the preferences and expectations of foreign tourists from abroad, we conducted a survey.
A total of 255 respondents took part in the survey process - visitors who entered the
Kashkadarya region of the Republic of Uzbekistan from foreign countries, including 148
men (58.0%) and 107 women (42.0%). In the age structure of the respondents, the age
group prevails.35-45 years old - 111 people (43.5%). This is followed by the age group 25-
34 years - 63 people (24.7%). Respondents in the age group 45-54 years - 55 people
(21.6%) and over 55 years old - 26 people (10.2%).
References:
1. Birzhakov, M. B. (2000).
Introduction to tourism.
SPb.: Publishing Trading House
Gerda.
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2. Panov, I. N. (1998). Ecotourism and its role in the sustainable development of
territories Text.
MSU Bulletin, Ser. 5, Geography, №6,
13-18.
3. Fowler, B. (1999) Pierre Bourdieu and Theory of Culture: A Critical Analysis Text.
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1220.
4. Balaeva, A., & Predvoditeleva, M. (2007). Scope of services in the global economy:
development trends.
World economy and international relations, № 3
, 23-28.
5. Veprentsev, V. (1999). Legal Aspects of Entering into a Contractual Relationship
with a Tourist.
Tourism Business, October, № 10
, 16.
6. Dumazedier, J. (1962).
Ver une civilization du loisir
. (p.347). Paris.
7. Kozielski, J. (2002).
Transgrsja i kultura
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8. MacCannell, D. (1988).
The Tourist: A New Theory of Leisure Class
. New York.
9. Rojek, C. (1993). Disney culture.
Leisure studies, № 12
, 21-135
10. Toffler, A. (1990).
Powershift: Knowledge, Wealth and Violence at Edge of the 21st
Centure.
(p.238). New York: bantam Books.
11.
The results of the analysis conducted by the State Committee of Tourism
.
Retrieved 2019, from www.uzbektourism.uz
