Children across Uzbekistan have sent 400 of their drawings to the ‘Public Services for my Family’ art contest, raising awareness among families of how to access and get the most from government services

The nationwide drawing contest was arranged for children aged 6 to 14 by the EU-funded UNDP project ‘Improved Public Service Delivery and Enhanced Governance in Rural Uzbekistan’, open for submissions from May 1 to May 30.

Hosted by the Public Services Agency of the Ministry of Justice, and also the Ministry for Supporting Mahallas and Families, this contest raised family and community awareness of public service centers located throughout Uzbekistan, along with the national online services portal www.my.gov.uz, the #1148 support number, and the @davxizmataloqa_bot Telegram channel

Calls for drawing were made through the online platforms of the Public Services Agency, UNDP and the Ministry for Supporting Mahallas and Families, reaching out to children, their families and communities.

While competition artworks were mostly submitted online, contest organizers allowed 80 children evacuated from the Sardoba and Mizabad districts following the Sardoba Reservoir dam burst to submit drawings in person

398 drawings were entered in total, mostly from the regions of Kashkadarya, Namangan, Bukhara and the Republic of Karakalpakstan. Others were submitted from Uzbekistan’s remotest areas, including the Guldara, Avazmalik, Kamashi and Ayoqchi villages of the Kashkadarya region, and the Denov district of the Surkhandarya region.

Over thirty contest winners will be selected by June 25, after which a drawing exhibition and official awards ceremony will be held at a safe date. The winning artworks will also be put on display at http://contest.ipsd.uz/