First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education and Science of Uzbekistan Erkin Turdimov spoke about plans to bring order to the education system, improve the quality of teaching, and tighten control over school attendance. He also named the patriotic education of youth as one of his top priorities. The minister emphasized that he is still studying the state of the sector and is not counting on revolutionary transformations, preferring to achieve gradual results.
According to Turdimov’s assessment, average school attendance in the country does not currently reach 50%. Among the reasons, he cited engaging children in work and helping parents, including trading at markets, as well as some students switching to private tutoring and private educational centers. During his time working in the Sirdaryo Region, he managed to increase attendance to 80% thanks to the involvement of law enforcement officers and personal oversight. A digital monitoring system is currently being tested in Tashkent that will track student attendance and teacher performance. Moving forward, there are plans to expand it nationwide.
Separately, the minister commented on personnel policy at universities. He denied reports regarding the dismissal of five rectors, clarifying that no university head has left their post so far, although four have received strict warnings. A special working group has been established to evaluate the performance of university leadership. Turdimov also cited an example of testing the knowledge of ten students from a prestigious institute: according to him, none of them managed to pass even a standard test with a satisfactory grade. In addition, the ministry sent proposals to relevant organizations to improve the content of school textbooks.