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Uzbekistan
Education
In developing a national education system to replace the centralized
education prescriptions of Moscow, Uzbekistan has encountered
severe budgeting shortfalls. The education law of 1992 began the
process of theoretical reform, but the physical base has deteriorated,
and curriculum revision has been slow.
Education System
Education is supervised by two national agencies, the Ministry
of People's Education (for primary, secondary, and vocational
education) and the Ministry of Higher Education (for postsecondary
education). In 1993 Uzbekistan had 9,834 preschool centers, most
of which were run by state enterprises for the children of their
employees. An estimated 35 percent of children ages one to six
attend such schools, but few rural areas have access to preschools.
In the early 1990s, enterprises began closing schools or transferring
them to direct administration of the Ministry of People's Education.
A modest government construction program adds about 50,000 new
places annually--a rate that falls far short of demand. Although
experts rate most of Uzbekistan's preschools as being in poor
condition, the government regards them as contributing vitally
to the nutrition and education of children, especially when both
parents work, a situation that became increasingly frequent in
the 1990s.
In 1993 enrollment in regular and vocational schools, which covered
grades one through eleven (ages six through sixteen), was 4.9
million of the estimated 5.7 million children in that age-group.
Because of funding shortages, in 1993 the period of compulsory
education was shortened from eleven to nine years. The infrastructure
problem of schools is most serious at the primary and secondary
levels; the government categorizes 50 percent of school buildings
as unsuitable, and repair budgets are inadequate. Construction
of new schools has been delayed because the boards of capital
construction of the two education ministries do not have direct
control over contractor pricing or construction practices at local
levels. School nutritional levels often are below state standards;
an estimated 50 percent of students do not receive a hot meal.
In 1992 about 5,300 of Uzbekistan's 8,500 schools had double shifts;
because most of these schools were rural, this situation affected
only 25 percent of students, however.
In 1993 an estimated 220,000 students were in vocational training
programs, with about 100,000 students graduating annually from
440 schools. Working in close cooperation with local employers,
the schools choose from 260 trades to offer instruction conforming
with industrial needs. In the post-Soviet era, vocational curricula
were modified to accommodate an upsurge in light industry. Experts
agree that, as the national economy diversifies and expands, the
vocational program must expand its coverage of key industries
and streamline its organization, which suffered disorientation
in its transition from the rigid Soviet system.
In 1992 some 321,700 students were enrolled in institutions of
higher learning; of those, about 43 percent were in evening or
correspondence courses. The enrollment represented about 19 percent
of the seventeen to twenty age-group, a decrease from the more
than 23 percent reported in 1990. In 1992 enrollment declined
because an entrance examination was used for the first time, Russian
emigration continued, and the economy's demand for college graduates
fell. Experts predicted that the government would restrict admittance
levels until its policies succeed in expanding the economy. Fifty-three
institutions of higher learning, many with productive research
programs, were active in 1993. Higher education is hindered, however,
by a shortage of laboratories, libraries, computers and data banks,
and publishing facilities to disseminate research findings.
The state higher education system includes three universities,
located at Nukus, Samarqand, and Tashkent. Tashkent State University,
which has 19,300 students and 1,480 teachers, is the largest university
in Central Asia; it has sixteen full departments, including three
devoted to philology and one to Asian studies. Some twenty research
institutes offer courses in specialized areas of medicine, veterinary
science, and industry and technology. Another thirty institutes
of higher learning offer postsecondary studies in medicine, agriculture,
teaching, engineering, industrial technology, music, theater,
economics, law, pharmacy, and political science; seventeen of
the latter category are located in Tashkent.
Data as of March 1996
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