Work Carried Out on Digitalizing the Economy in Uzbekistan

Аннотация

This article examines the significance of digital transformation for a country’s economy in today’s global environment and familiarizes readers with the work carried out and ongoing efforts in Uzbekistan to digitalize its economy in recent years. Keywords: digital transformation, globalization, smart city, Digital Uzbekistan, e-commerce. Introduction: The globalization of economic digitalization is bringing about significant changes worldwide. In 2024, more than 15% of the global economy operates in sectors related to digital technologies and the digital economy. Additionally, the global volume of the digital economy reached 6.3 trillion USD in 2022, and it is expected to grow to 7.6 trillion USD by 2025, accounting for 20% of the global economy. Furthermore, in 2023, the global internet penetration rate reached 65% of the world’s population, and this figure continues to grow annually. For example, the adoption of digital technologies in developing countries such as China and India has significantly boosted economic growth. In China alone, the share of the digital economy reached 39% in 2023, becoming a major driver of the country’s overall economic growth. According to the Global Digital Index (GDI) in 2023, the United States, Germany, South Korea, and Singapore ranked highest in integrating digital innovations and technologies. These countries are accelerating economic growth by widely supporting advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, and the Internet of Things (IoT). The digital economy refers to economic activities where data in digital form is the primary factor in production and service delivery, enabling more efficient solutions in various types of production, services, technologies, devices, storage, and product delivery through the processing and analysis of large volumes of information. In other words, the digital economy encompasses activities such as online services, electronic payments, internet commerce, crowdfunding, and other sectors tied to the development of digital computer technologies. In our opinion, the digital economy is economic activity carried out and managed through digital technologies under conditions of scarce economic resources. The primary challenge facing any economic system is resource scarcity, and in the digital economy, the main focus should be on addressing this issue. As of 2023, approximately 66% of the world’s population uses the internet, equivalent to more than 5.1 billion users. Considering the global population continues to grow annually, internet penetration rates are also steadily increasing. However, access to the internet is not evenly distributed across regions. While developed countries have high internet penetration rates, developing and less developed regions often have significantly lower rates. For instance, over 90% of the population in Europe and North America uses the internet, whereas this figure is notably lower in Africa and certain Asian countries. page 1129 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ISSN: 2692-5206, Impact Factor: 12,23 American Academic publishers, volume 05, issue 04, 2025 Journal: https://www.academicpublishers.org/journals/index.php/ijai E-commerce refers to the process of conducting trade transactions and deals via the internet, including purchasing (or selling) goods and making payments for them. E-commerce operations include product selection, order confirmation, payment processing, and delivery assurance. There is often confusion in distinguishing between e-commerce and e-business. E-business is an economic sector that encompasses all financial and trade operations conducted through computer networks, as well as the business processes associated with these operations. The global retail e- commerce volume (B2C) reached 1 trillion USD in 2012 and exceeded 2 trillion USD in 2017. Online revenues amounted to 3.4 trillion USD in 2019, and e-commerce is expected to become a 4.9 trillion USD industry by 2021. Quantitatively, there are 259 million online shoppers in the United States, each contributing approximately 1,955 USD in revenue, 1,003 million in China, 119 million in Brazil, 64 million in Germany, and 53 million in the United Kingdom. The online market in Germany is highly concentrated, with three retailers—Amazon, OTTO, and Zalando— accounting for 37% of sales. Amazon also generates the highest revenue in the United Kingdom and France. Credit cards are the most common payment method for online shoppers. Electronic payments rank second, with PayPal being the most popular payment system in this category. Cash- on-delivery is the least common payment method. Since the early 2000s, Uzbekistan has prioritized the development of information and communication technologies (ICT) and digitalization. Notably, the “Comprehensive Program for the Development of the National Information and Communication System of the Republic of Uzbekistan for 2013–2020,” the “Strategy of Actions on Five Priority