Positioning Uzbekistan as a Global Hub for Education: Uzbekistan to Convene the World Summit on Professional Education

Uzbekistan's education is characterized by remarkable strengths, including the dynamic progress that stand out as Uzbekistan's competitive advantages in higher education. Since 2016, Uzbekistan has undergone a comprehensive reform of its higher education sector.

Under the leadership of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, the nation has witnessed various initiatives in transforming higher education landscape in Uzbekistan, entailing the shift from a survival-oriented approach of education to the one that emphasizes modernization, growth, and innovation (Muratov & Wilkins, 2024).

Higher education has been positioned as the backbone of this transformation, with enrollment of students rising dramatically from 9% to 42% in recent years, alongside parallel reforms in governance, internationalization, and quality assurance of higher education sector (World Bank, 2022; OECD, 2023).

The establishment of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovation (MHESI) in 2023 further institutionalizes this reform, integrating higher education with science and innovation in line with global standards. With a long-term vision articulated in the Concept for the Development of the Higher Education System until 2030, Uzbekistan has created an enabling environment for knowledge-driven growth and international collaboration.

The country's investment is also significant. Allocating 10-12% of GDP annually to education (Karimov, 2016) has led to the creation of new universities, modernization of infrastructure, and provision of modern teaching tools (Kasimova, 2022). This consistent commitment reflects the government's recognition of education as a critical driver of national progress.

The 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) witnessed a significant proposal from President Shavkat Mirziyoyev for the country to host the World Summit on Professional Education. This bold idea, delivered before world leaders, reflects Uzbekistan's growing confidence on the global stage and underscores the centrality of education in its national transformation agenda.

President Mirziyoyev's call for the World Summit on Professional Education is timely. The world is facing increasingly challenging issues due to widening technological divides, chronic human conflict, uneven access to quality education, and deepening inequalities in skills development. A unified international platform for sharing experiences, knowledge, and best practices in education would facilitate global dialogue on aligning higher education with future workforce demands, particularly in the context of digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and sustainability.

To put into the context, professional education is about preparing citizens for meaningful participation in modern economies, equipping them with adequate knowledge, practical skills, abilities and desirable values which are required for high-tech industries, innovative enterprises, and social development. More importantly, it is about enabling people to have practical, future-ready knowledge, skills, humanity-values and abilities that directly contribute to human dignity, their and others' well-being, poverty reduction as well as sustainable growth.

The summit has the aim of strengthening collaboration among universities, governments, and industry across countries to promote innovation-driven learning ecosystems. Besides, the summit is also expected to promote inclusivity by ensuring that developing countries have equitable access to educational resources and expertise. It also expected that the summit will enable participating countries to advance professional education as a means of enhancing employability, addressing global labor market imbalances, and fostering human dignity through meaningful work.

Uzbekistan, with its profound intellectual legacy and ongoing educational and institutional reforms, stands as an ideal host for this summit. With the strong foundation, anchored on many towering figures in Islamic scholarship, such as Imam al-Bukhari, Imam al-Tirmidhi, and Imam al-Maturidi, the nation embodies a living bridge between the classical Islamic tradition and contemporary intellectual renewal.

Hosting the summit in Uzbekistan would therefore carry symbolic significance that affirms the continuity between heritage and modern progress. The country's commitment to revitalizing its scholarly institutions and promoting intercultural understanding further enhances its readiness to convene global thinkers, educators, and policymakers in shaping the future of knowledge and leadership in the Muslim world.

For the proposed World Summit on Professional Education to be impactful, Uzbekistan is poised to formulate a preparatory committee to comprise representatives from various international organizations, and leading universities to ensure global participation and academic rigor. For the summit to be an impactful gathering, the committee is expected to define a clear summit agenda, to identify the themes to be deliberated in the summit, such as professional education in the digital era, sustainable development, academic-industry partnerships, humanity-centric education, and inclusive access for marginalized groups.

Indeed, the Summit is an avenue to highlight Central Asia's progress in higher education and positioning Uzbekistan as a model of reform for other developing countries. The summit could be the launching pad to create a global network for professional education, headquartered in Uzbekistan, ensuring continuity beyond a one-time event. This very much aligns with Uzbekistan's Higher Education 2030 Concept, ensuring the country's reforms resonate with global educational priorities.

President Mirziyoyev's vision for a World Summit on Professional Education reflects both national pride and global responsibility. It builds upon Uzbekistan's domestic reforms in education while addressing pressing international challenges in skills, employability, human well-being, and equity. With thoughtful planning, broad international collaboration, and strategic alignment, Uzbekistan can transform this initiative into a landmark event that strengthens higher education worldwide and reaffirms the nation's role as a bridge between civilizations, past and future.

Indeed, the World Summit on Professional Education, as envisioned by Uzbekistan, would serve several critical objectives. It would provide a global platform for the exchange of best practices, elevate the role of educators, align professional training with the Sustainable Development Goals, and strengthen international cooperation in shaping the future of work.

Such a summit would also ensure inclusivity, allowing both developed and developing nations to share their experiences and challenges. In a world where disparities in education and skills are widening, Uzbekistan's call for a World Summit on Professional Education is timely. It offers a chance to rethink the future of education, link it with sustainable development, and place human dignity at the center of global progress.

Shukran Abd Rahman is a Professor of Industrial and Organisational Psychology at the Department of Psychology, AbdulHamid AbuSulayman Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences, International Islamic University Malaysia. He was a Fellow Researcher at the Imam Bukhari International Scientific Research Center in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

Dr. Shahzod Islamov serves as Deputy Director of the Imam Maturidi International Scientific Research Center under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan, where he advances scholarly studies on Maturidi theology and promotes harmony through rigorous academic research anchored in Islamic tradition.