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Uzbekistan’s incumbent president, Islam Karimov, who is also running for president in the upcoming presidential election, met on Feb. 20 with voters in the country’s south-western region of Kashkadarya as part his election campaign.

Karimov is a candidate of the Liberal Democratic Party of Uzbekistan (UzLiDeP).

The presidential election in Uzbekistan is scheduled for March 29. The election campaign began December 26, 2014.

The Uzbekistan National News Agency (UzA) reported Feb. 20 that President Karimov, addressing the voters, highlighted the importance of a comprehensive development of the country, the continuation of large-scale social and economic reforms, and increasing the population’s income and life quality.

Reportedly, Karimov’s election program focuses on the modernization of economy, the construction of new industrial enterprises, and further development of small business and private entrepreneurship.

In his election program attention is also paid to the revision of state’s participation in economy, the realization of structural reforms in agriculture, strengthening food security, furthering the introduction of localization programs, the improvement of the investment climate, and ensuring the employment.

In recent days, all the presidential candidates in Uzbekistan have been meeting with voters as part of the election agitation, the report said.

Another presidential candidate, Akmal Saidov, from the Democratic Party of Uzbekistan Milly Tiklanish (National Revival), met with voters in the Ferghana region of Uzbekistan.

The main points in his election program are the conservation and enrichment of historical, cultural and intellectual heritage of the Uzbek people, its traditions and values, ensuring food security, the support for housing construction and infrastructure.

The candidate from the Social Democratic Party Adolat (Justice), Narimon Umarov, made a trip to the Tashkent and Syrdarya regions.

While addressing the voters with his pre-election campaign, Umarov stressed the importance of effective cooperation between the authorities and society, an open dialogue between citizens and officials at all levels.

Preserving and developing of different nations and people living in peace and harmony in Uzbekistan for centuries, further strengthening of independence and freedom of the media and increasing of its activity in the open coverage of socio-political and economic reforms were also emphasized.

The task of ensuring social stability in Uzbekistan requires the consolidation of efforts of the country, government, business and civil society institutions, the candidate’s pre-election campaign said.

The social development programs are planned to be broadly and publicly evaluated. The measures of strengthening the public control are expected to be conducted. The socially significant civic initiatives are planned to be supported. The activity is expected to be improved. The participation of the non-state, non-commercial organizations is planned to be expanded in solving the problems in the areas of health, education, environmental protection.

The candidate of the People's Democratic Party Hotamjon Ketmonov met with the voters in Khorezm region and Karakalpakstan.

His pre-election campaign includes the development of the participation of civil society institutions in open discussion of laws, the development of social partnership institutions.

It also includes expanding of the availability of judicial mechanisms for the protection of citizens' rights and improving the quality of executing the judgements by strengthening the judicial control over these issues.

The campaign also includes intensifying the efforts to provide the able-bodied population with jobs in the enterprises offering stable jobs with decent salary, the development of social partnership institutions.

The expansion of the number of rural health centers, especially for people in remote villages, strengthening of the state control over the medicine pricing, the activity of pharmaceutical companies and pharmacies are also included in the campaign.

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