Uzbekistan enters top 5 countries in poverty reduction
Where this record came from — a breakdown in numbers
According to the updated World Bank report from September 2026 and data from the Ministry of Poverty Reduction and Employment, Uzbekistan has demonstrated a steady decline in poverty levels. From 2021 to 2025, the indicator decreased from 17% to 5.8%, and by the end of the first nine months of 2026, it dropped to 3.6% (equivalent to 1.4 million people).
By the international criterion for upper-middle-income countries ($8.30 per day at PPP), the poverty level reduction in the republic in 2024–2025 amounted to 40%. This is the fifth-highest rate of progress in the world since 2000. Uzbekistan also accounted for approximately 40% of the total reduction in the number of people living below the poverty line in the Europe and Central Asia region.
World Bank experts attribute the positive changes to growth in domestic consumption, expansion of wage employment, and an increase in the wage fund. In turn, the state employed large-scale financial levers: under Presidential Decree No. PP-49, 164.7 trillion soums were allocated for employment and entrepreneurship development programs.
Of these: - 140 trillion soums — for lending to small and medium-sized businesses through the banking sector; - 20 trillion soums — for infrastructure modernization in mahallas; - 3.7 trillion soums — for developing the business environment in districts with challenging socio-economic conditions.
From January to September 2026, 824,000 citizens secured permanent employment, and 980,000 specialists formalized their employment.
According to data from the National Statistics Committee for the first nine months of 2026: - the average salary reached 7.27 million soums (+18% in nominal terms compared to 2025); - total household income amounted to 1,026.7 trillion soums, with real growth, accounting for inflation, recorded at 8.1% (per capita income — 26.1 million soums, real growth — 6.2%).
Annual inflation in September stood at 6.4% (food — 6.3%, services — 7%). The market showed mixed dynamics: rising prices for gasoline (+20.1%), meat and dairy products, and public transport fares in Tashkent were accompanied by seasonal declines in prices for certain groups of fruits and vegetables.
Further consolidation of these achievements requires a focus on the qualitative parameters of the labor market. Around 85% of new jobs in 2021–2025 were created in the informal sector, and approximately 22% of the population remains vulnerable to external economic fluctuations. In this regard, the key task of economic policy is transforming temporary employment into high-tech, officially registered, and well-paid jobs.
