Erzurum, Türkiye – April 25, 2025
ECO Secretary General Ambassador Asad Majeed Khan met with H.E. Umid Shadiev, Chairman of the Tourism Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan, who came to Erzurum, ECO Tourism Capital 2025 to discuss strengthening tourism cooperation within the ECO framework.
Ambassador Khan expressed his appreciation for Uzbekistan’s consistent contributions to ECO tourism initiatives, highlighting the country’s dynamic progress in expanding its tourism sector and its commitment to regional collaboration, particularly the constructive ideas. He praised Uzbekistan’s growing international appeal and encouraged proactive involvement in ECO platforms, particularly in supporting tourism, private sector engagement, and tourism education.
During the meeting, both parties discussed the importance of further empowering tourism stakeholders across the ECO region, with particular focus on enhancing private sector participation and fostering educational exchanges. They emphasized the need to nurture tourism talent through joint programs and platforms like the ECO Tour Operators’ Network, ECO Tourism Education Network (ECO-TEN), ECO Tourism Website and ECO Tourism Capitals for which Uzbekistan celebrated Shahrisabz with this title for the last year.
Ambassador Khan also underscored the vital role of enhanced connectivity in driving tourism growth and interconnected nature of tourism with various sectors like transport, citing the launch of new direct flights between Lahore and Tashkent as a significant development that would boost intraregional travel and people-to-people contacts to further support all economic sectors.
Chairman Shadiev reaffirmed Uzbekistan’s strong commitment to the ECO tourism agenda and conveyed readiness to collaborate on upcoming initiatives aimed at promoting the region’s shared heritage and diverse tourism offerings. He also noted that Uzbekistan has very ambitious goals set by the leadership of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
The meeting concluded with both sides pledging to continue close coordination to unlock the full potential of regional tourism through innovative, inclusive, and sustainable strategies.
