AN ECONOMETRIC ASSESSMENT OF THE DETERMINANTS OF INVESTMENT ACTIVITY IN THE REGIONS OF UZBEKISTAN

This paper proposes an econometric framework for assessing the determinants of investment activity across the regions of Uzbekistan and illustrates it with a panel fixed-effects specification. Despite rapid national growth of fixed-capital investment — which rose by 27.6% in 2024 to about 493.7 trillion soum (~USD 39 billion) — investment remains spatially concentrated, and the factors driving regional differences are insufficiently quantified. A two-way fixed-effects model is specified for a balanced panel of 14 regions over 2015–2024, with regional fixed-capital investment as the dependent variable and bank credit, foreign direct investment, gross regional product, employment, infrastructure, wages, and a special-economic-zone indicator as regressors. A pilot estimation indicates that access to bank credit and regional market size are the strongest drivers of investment, while foreign direct investment, infrastructure, and special economic zones have positive but smaller effects. The findings support a policy of deepening regional financial access, upgrading infrastructure in lagging regions, and targeted investment facilitation to reduce spatial disparities.