Shavkat Mirziyoyev facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Shavkat Mirziyoyev
|
|
|---|---|
|
Шавкат Мирзиёев
|
|
.jpg)
Official portrait, 2018
|
|
| 2nd President of Uzbekistan | |
| Assumed office 14 December 2016 Acting: 8 September 2016 – 14 December 2016 |
|
| Prime Minister | Himself Abdulla Aripov |
| Preceded by |
|
| 3rd Prime Minister of Uzbekistan | |
| In office 12 December 2003 – 14 December 2016 |
|
| President |
|
| Deputy |
|
| Preceded by | Oʻtkir Sultonov |
| Succeeded by | Abdulla Aripov |
| Chairman of the Organization of Turkic States | |
| Assumed office 11 November 2022 |
|
| Preceded by | Recep Tayyip Erdoğan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 24 July 1957 Zomin District, Uzbek SSR, Soviet Union (present-day Uzbekistan) |
| Political party | Liberal Democratic Party (2016–present) |
| Other political affiliations |
|
| Spouse | Ziroat Mirziyoyeva |
| Children | 3 |
| Residences | Qibray District, Tashkent |
| Alma mater | Tashkent Institute of Irrigation and Melioration |
| Website | https://president.uz/en |
Shavkat Mirziyoyev is an important politician from Uzbekistan. He has been the President of Uzbekistan since 2016. Before that, he was the Prime Minister of Uzbekistan from 2003 to 2016. As President, he is also the leader of Uzbekistan's armed forces.
After the previous president, Islam Karimov, passed away, Mirziyoyev became the acting president. He was then elected president in 2016. He was re-elected in 2021 and again in 2023. The 2023 election allowed him to start a new seven-year term after some changes to the country's constitution.
During his time as president, Mirziyoyev has made many changes to Uzbekistan. He has worked to improve the country's economy and its relationships with other countries, especially its neighbors in Central Asia. He also made changes to protect human rights and closed a well-known prison. A proposed change to the constitution about the region of Karakalpakstan led to protests, and the government decided not to make that specific change.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Shavkat Mirziyoyev was born on 24 July 1957, in the Jizzakh Region of what was then the Uzbek SSR. This area is now part of Uzbekistan. His father, Miromon Mirziyoyev, was a doctor for most of his life. His mother, Marifat, was a nurse who passed away when Shavkat was young.
In 1981, Mirziyoyev finished his studies at the Tashkent Institute of Irrigation and Melioration. He earned a degree in Technological Sciences. In the late 1980s, he joined the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. In 1990, he was chosen as a deputy for the Supreme Soviet of the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic. This was the last time this legislative body met before Uzbekistan became an independent country in 1991.
Political Career
Mirziyoyev served as a governor, known as a Hakim, for different regions. He was the governor of Jizzakh Region from 1996 to 2001. Then, he became the governor of Samarqand Region from 2001 until 2003.
Becoming Prime Minister
In 2003, President Islam Karimov chose Mirziyoyev to be the Prime Minister of Uzbekistan. The Uzbek parliament approved this choice on 12 December 2003. He took over from the previous Prime Minister, Oʻtkir Sultonov.
As Prime Minister, Mirziyoyev worked with leaders from other countries. For example, in 2006, he met with the Prime Minister of South Korea, Han Myeong-sook, in Tashkent. They signed agreements to work together more closely in areas like energy, farming, and technology. Trade between South Korea and Uzbekistan grew a lot during this time.
During his time as Prime Minister, from 2003 to 2016, Mirziyoyev was in charge of the country's cotton production system. In 2016, when he was acting president, he still oversaw cotton production.
Presidential Elections
On 24 October 2021, Uzbekistan's Central Election Commission announced that Mirziyoyev won 80.1 percent of the votes. This meant he would serve a second five-year term as president. Later, after a change in the constitution, he ran again in a special election in 2023 and won with 87.7% of the vote. This allowed him to start a new seven-year term.
Presidency
After President Karimov passed away in September 2016, Mirziyoyev was chosen to lead the committee for the funeral. This was seen as a sign that he would become the next president. On 8 September 2016, he was appointed as the interim president by the parliament. The chairman of the Senate, Nigmatilla Yuldashev, was supposed to take over, but he suggested Mirziyoyev instead because of his experience.
.jpg)
People hoped that Mirziyoyev would improve Uzbekistan's relationships with neighboring countries like Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. He began to resolve a long-standing border issue with Kyrgyzstan. Flights between the capitals of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan also started again in January 2017, after being stopped since 1992.
On 16 September, the election commission announced that Mirziyoyev would run in the December 2016 presidential election. He was the candidate for the Uzbekistan Liberal Democratic Party. Mirziyoyev won the election on 4 December 2016, with 88.6% of the votes.
On 14 December, Mirziyoyev was sworn in as president. He promised to continue the work of Islam Karimov and also to make many changes in the government. Abdulla Aripov was confirmed as the new Prime Minister on the same day.
Changes in Uzbekistan
In the first few months after becoming president, Mirziyoyev started to make changes to Uzbekistan's economy and its international relationships. Many experts believed he would be a better president than his predecessor.
Uzbekistan created over 336,000 new jobs in 2017. The amount of goods exported from the country increased by almost 15 percent. Mirziyoyev also started the "Tashkent City" project to attract foreign investors to Uzbekistan. He promised to restart talks about Uzbekistan joining the World Trade Organization (WTO).
On 22 December, for the first time in the country's history, Shavkat Mirziyoyev gave a speech to the parliament. His speech lasted four hours. He spoke openly about issues like corruption and the need for new, young people in government who love their country.
.jpg)
Many people compare his leadership to that of Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping or Russian leader Mikhail Gorbachev. Some have called his time in office an "Uzbek Spring." In August 2019, he closed the well-known Jaslyk Prison.
Constitutional Changes
In April 2023, a referendum was held in Uzbekistan to change the constitution. The changes increased the presidential term from 5 to 7 years. The number of terms a president can serve is still limited to two. However, because of the new constitution, Mirziyoyev's previous presidencies are not counted towards this limit. Soon after, he called for early elections, which took place on July 9, 2023. Mirziyoyev won with 87% of the votes.
Foreign Relationships
.jpg)
Mirziyoyev's approach to foreign policy is much more open than that of the previous president. Uzbekistan had been quite isolated internationally. Mirziyoyev promised to have an active foreign policy when he became president.
In his first 10 months, Mirziyoyev visited Kazakhstan four times, Turkmenistan three times, and Russia two times. He also visited China, Saudi Arabia, the United States, Turkey, and Kyrgyzstan. He met with leaders from many other countries, including Iran, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Bulgaria, Belarus, and the King of Spain.
Regional Cooperation
One of his most important achievements in foreign policy is improving relationships with Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. On 5 September 2017, he made a historic visit to Kyrgyzstan. This was the first time an Uzbek president had made a state visit to that country since 2000. On 19 September 2017, Mirziyoyev spoke at the UN General Assembly for the first time.
In March 2018, Mirziyoyev visited Tajikistan. This was the first state visit by an Uzbek president to Dushanbe since 2000. In March 2019, during a visit to Abu Dhabi, Mirziyoyev made deals worth over $10 billion in areas like infrastructure, energy, and agriculture.
In 2022, Uzbekistan hosted the 22nd Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Samarkand. Leaders from many countries, including Turkey, Russia, China, Iran, and India, attended this important meeting.
Role in Afghanistan
Mirziyoyev has also played an important role in Afghanistan. Since March 2018, he has offered to host peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban. In August 2018, a Taliban group visited Tashkent at Mirziyoyev's request to discuss issues like transport, power, and peace in Afghanistan.
.jpg)
Language Policy
In October 2020, Mirziyoyev issued a decree to speed up the full change of the Uzbek language to the Latin alphabet. This plan outlines language policy for the years 2020 to 2030. It aims to fully switch the Uzbek alphabet to the Latin alphabet and requires government officials to be certified in their knowledge of Uzbek by April 2021.
Personal Life
Shavkat Mirziyoyev is married to Ziroat Mirziyoyeva. They have two daughters, a son, and six grandchildren. Their oldest daughter, Saida Mirziyoyeva, has been leading the Presidential Administration of Uzbekistan since 2025. Both of his sons-in-law, Oybek Tursunov and Otabek Umarov, have also held positions in the Administration.
Since becoming president, Mirziyoyev has built a new home for himself in Qibray District. This includes a special presidential highway and an interior decorated with fancy materials. In February 2021, it was reported that he was also building a special mountain compound with a new reservoir.
Awards and Honors
Mirziyoyev has received several awards and honors both from Uzbekistan and other countries:
- Order "Mehnat shuhrati" (Uzbekistan)
- Order "Fidokorona xizmatlari uchun" (Uzbekistan)
- Order of Danaker (Kyrgyzstan, 2017)
- Honored Citizen of Seoul (South Korea, 2018)
- Prize “For Merits to Eurasia” (Turkey, 2018)
- Order of Friendship (Kazakhstan, 2018)
- Honorary Doctorate from Nagoya University (Japan, 2019)
- Order of the Crown (Tajikistan, 2021)
- Order of Alexander Nevsky (Russia, 2022)
- Order of the Golden Eagle (Kazakhstan, 2024)
- Grand Officer of the Legion of Honour (France, 2025)
See also
In Spanish: Shavkat Mirziyoyev para niños
