Government website requirements in Uzbekistan: rules and a checklist

What the openness law requires, which website criteria the Openness Index checks, what to put in the specification and how to check a government site before launch.

A website for a ministry, a khokimiyat or a state enterprise works differently from a company website. It is judged not only by visitors but by the law: what is published, in which languages, how often it is updated and whether people with visual impairments can use it. Here is what the rules for government websites in Uzbekistan require, what is checked when openness is assessed, and how to write a specification so the site passes those checks without rework.

What the law says

The main act is the Law "On openness of the activities of state authorities and administration" (No. ZRU-369 of 05.05.2014). Article 13 sets these rules for official websites:

• language — information is published in the state language; versions in other languages are allowed;
• dates — every publication is dated;
• updates — each body sets its own schedule, but no less than once a week.

Article 5 of the same law lists what information about a body's activities must be disclosed: legal acts, structure, budget and spending, public events, handling of appeals and more. That list is what the site's section structure is built from.

The Openness Index: what is checked on the site

Presidential Decree UP-154 of 14.06.2022 introduced the Openness Index. It assesses state bodies, companies with a state share of 50% or more, and state unitary enterprises. One of its indicators is the state of the official website. The criteria from the annex to the decree that directly affect development:

Most of these criteria are set at the development stage: if the CMS has no date field for documents or no low-vision mode, content alone cannot fix it later.

Companies with state participation have a separate act: Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 81 of 19.02.2021, which approves the Regulation on requirements for their official websites. Before writing the specification, check the current versions of these acts on lex.uz.

What to put in the specification

1. Language versions. Uzbek is the main one; Russian and English cover synchronous translation. Decide early whether Uzbek Cyrillic is needed separately from Latin.
2. A documents section with dates, numbers, search and filters: legal framework, reports, disclosures.
3. A low-vision version: contrast, font size, colour schemes, text-to-speech.
4. A press centre: news, photos, videos and announcements the press service publishes itself, without a developer.
5. Appeals: an online form, statuses and review statistics.
6. Structure and leadership with contacts of regional offices.
7. A site map, search and breadcrumbs.
8. Hosting: on the client's server or the contractor's, and who is responsible for backups and updates.
9. Rights and access: the source code, domain and admin panel stay with the organisation.

A ready template with the remaining points is in our article "Website specification".

Example: the Uzbek Republican Currency Exchange website

For the Uzbek Republican Currency Exchange we built the official website to the exchange's specification: a multi-level menu with side navigation, publication of trading data and the auction rate with an archive and export, corporate disclosure, online appeals, a low-vision version and search. There are four language versions: Russian, Uzbek in Cyrillic and in Latin, and English. The pages were assembled on the studio's test domain, and the live site was deployed on the exchange's own server.

Timing and procurement

A website for a government institution usually takes 2–3 months: many sections, approvals and content in several languages. We take part in public procurement and sign NDAs. Payment is 50/50, the source code and access are handed over to the organisation, and the warranty is 3 months.

Pre-launch checklist

1. Every page opens on a phone without horizontal scrolling.
2. Every page exists in Uzbek, Russian and English.
3. The low-vision mode works on every page.
4. Every document and news item has a date.
5. The appeals form sends messages and the statistics update.
6. There is a site map, search and breadcrumbs.
7. Contacts of the press service and of those responsible for the site are published.
8. Links to the Government Portal and subordinate organisations work.
9. The press service has been trained and publishes on its own.

FAQ

Is a low-vision version mandatory?

Accessibility for people with disabilities is a separate criterion of the Openness Index. Without it the site loses points, and adding it after launch is harder than designing it in from the start.

How often must a government website be updated?

Under the law each body sets its own schedule, but no less than once a week. That is why a convenient admin panel matters: the press service should publish without a developer's help.

Do you take part in public procurement?

Yes. We work through public procurement and sign an NDA when a project requires it.

Can the site be hosted on our server?

Yes. That is what we did for the currency exchange: the site was assembled on the studio's test domain and deployed on the client's server.

Preparing a website for a ministry, agency or state enterprise? See website development for government institutions and describe your task — we will estimate the timeline and cost for free.

Read also: Website specification: a template and checklist; How to choose a web studio in Tashkent: 12 questions.