30.10.2025

President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev received Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Audrey Azoulay in the city of Samarkand.

Issues of further developing multifaceted partnership of Uzbekistan with this authoritative UN institute were reviewed. 

At the beginning of the conversation, Audrey Azoulay sincerely congratulated the Head of our state on the historic event – the holding of the 43rd session of the General Conference of the Organization, which, for the first time in the past 40 years, is taking place outside UNESCO’s headquarters in Paris.

A positive assessment was given of the large-scale work carried out by the Uzbek side to organize the conference at the highest level, as well as of the substantive and practical agenda of its events.

In particular, the launch of the UNESCO Regional Center for Early Childhood Education, the ceremony of the Beruniy Prize winners, a special event dedicated to the 3,000th anniversary of Samarkand, and a series of forums on museums, artificial intelligence, gender issues, and many others, will be organized. 

It was noted with satisfaction that in recent years Uzbekistan and UNESCO have reached an unprecedented level of cooperation. The World Conference on Early Childhood Care and Education was jointly organized, the 1050th anniversary of Beruniy in Paris was celebrated, and an international prize named after this great scholar was established.

At the initiative of the Uzbek side, three important UNESCO resolutions have been adopted. Several new sites and cultural elements of Uzbekistan have been included in the Organization’s special lists.

Readiness was expressed to further expand and deepen the partnership, implement new joint projects in priority areas.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the President of Uzbekistan, in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the development of cooperation in the fields of science, education and culture, as well as her personal efforts in widely promoting the rich cultural heritage of the Uzbek people, presented Audrey Azoulay with a high state award – the Order of “Dustlik”.