Shavkat Mirziyoyev announced a number of initiatives at the UNESCO General Conference — basic information

On October 30, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, took part in the opening ceremony of the 43rd session of the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), held in the city of Samarkand.

The development of inclusive education and the use of artificial intelligence technologies were declared an absolute priority. The President proposed the creation of a UNESCO Platform for the Development of Inclusive Education for children with special needs and called for a World Summit on Vocational Education. Uzbekistan is ready to implement the pilot project “Artificial Intelligence – School” and organize an International Forum of Experts on AI Ethics under the auspices of UNESCO.

An initiative was put forward to declare November 19 as International Documentary Heritage Day and to establish an International Institute of Digital Heritage within UNESCO’s structure. The Head of State proposed holding an International Congress on Crafts and Folk Arts in Bukhara in 2027 within the framework of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network.

The Head of State emphasized the negative impact of climate change on cultural heritage and proposed the establishment of an international initiative, “UNESCO Eco-Capital”, as well as the development of a UNESCO Executive Board resolution on preserving cultural heritage in the context of globalization and climate change. Uzbekistan expressed its readiness to host an international symposium on this topic in Khiva.

Among other priorities, the need to counter the spread of misinformation in the digital space, protect public opinion, and combat discrimination, was emphasized. The President proposed organizing an International festival of children’s cultural content and developing a Comprehensive UNESCO strategy for media literacy development.