Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan | 11 September — The Islamic Organisation for Food Security (IOFS), in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Uzbekistan, conducted the two-day Practical Workshop on Digital, Geospatial and AI-Enabled Solutions for Agricultural Governance in Uzbekistan on 10–11 September 2026 in Tashkent.
Organised under the IOFS Food Security Governance Programme, the workshop brought together specialists from Uzbekistan’s agricultural institutions and experts from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Pakistan and Türkiye. It aimed to promote the practical application of satellite data, geospatial technologies, digital platforms and artificial intelligence in agricultural monitoring, public services and evidence-based decision-making.
The workshop was opened by Mr Kahramon Yuldashev, Deputy Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Uzbekistan. Representing IOFS, Program Manager - Ms Anar Karpbayeva presented the objectives of the workshop and highlighted the importance of adapting international experience to Uzbekistan’s national priorities and institutional needs.
Country sessions featured experience from the Ministry of Agriculture of Uzbekistan, the Ministry of Agriculture of Azerbaijan, the Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan Gharysh Sapary, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Türkiye. The presentations covered digital agricultural administration, farmer-support systems, agricultural information infrastructure, geospatial platforms, satellite-based monitoring and AI-enabled analysis. Dr Mobushir Riaz Khan served as the workshop’s International Resource Person and facilitated its technical demonstrations and practical activities.
A significant part of the workshop focused on Uzbekistan’s ongoing digital transformation of the agro-industrial complex. Specialists from relevant national institutions presented existing digital systems, technical approaches and implementation experience. These sessions generated strong interest among international participants and led to detailed technical questions and professional exchanges.
The programme combined country presentations, technical demonstrations, interactive discussions and selected practical activities. Participants exchanged experience on monitoring agricultural land and crop conditions, identifying water stress, drought, soil salinity and land degradation, and using AI to analyse data and support agricultural decision-making.
The technical discussions underscored that the selection of satellite data and analytical tools should begin with a clearly defined agricultural problem. Participants highlighted the importance of combining Earth observation with meteorological and field data, water information, crop phenology and agronomic knowledge. AI should complement, rather than replace, agronomic expertise, and its outputs should be scientifically sound, practically relevant and actionable for farmers and decision-makers.
As a key outcome, representatives of the participating countries and institutions agreed to continue technical cooperation and the exchange of expertise in digital agriculture, geospatial monitoring and AI-enabled decision support. The discussions also created a basis for direct professional engagement between Uzbekistan’s technical institutions and their counterparts from other participating countries.
Deputy Minister Kahramon Yuldashev closed the workshop and presented certificates to the participants. IOFS expressed its appreciation to the Ministry of Agriculture of Uzbekistan for its close cooperation and hospitality, and to all participating institutions and experts for their contributions to the successful implementation of the workshop.
