Almost 74 percent of job creators in the populous Central Asian nation are small businesses, and more than 60 percent of jobs are located in rural areas.

The complex will have a production capacity of 720,000 tonnes of finished polymer products –- enough to satisfy all domestic demand.

Mirziyoyev, who was re-elected with a landslide victory in October this year, made poverty reduction in the country one of the main targets of his reform policy.

Uzbekistan plans to ensure a 7.0 percent growth in GDP this year and the government has tasked itself to increase the volume of production in all sectors.

The construction of new, high-efficiency gas power stations, which would replace older and less efficient assets, is an important modernization step that complements the early growth of renewable energy.