Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan lies in the heart of Central Asia. It is a land of breathtaking ancient cities, golden deserts and a people caught between a glorious past and an uncertain future. With a population of approximately 36 million people, Uzbekistan is Central Asia’s most populous nation.
Unlike its nomadic neighbors, Uzbekistan’s roots are deeply agrarian, as evidenced by its large settled population, intricate architecture, and vast agricultural output. The country is blessed with abundant natural resources like cotton, gold, natural gas, and rich farmland, making it a regional powerhouse. Under this economic potential lies profound corruption, authoritarianism, and a government that tightly controls every aspect of public life, including religion.
Over 83% of Uzbekistan’s population identifi es as Sunni Muslim, considered among the most devout Muslims in Central Asia. Islam arrived in this region over a thousand years ago, transforming it into a center of Islamic learning and culture making Christianity a serious minority in the country.
Today, religious freedom remains a cruel fi ction in Uzbekistan. Unregistered religious activity is criminalized. Even registered churches must seek government approval for any activity outside formal worship services and for all materials they publish.
Converts from Islam face the most devastating persecution, ostracized by families, blackmailed by Islamic leaders, prevented from burying loved ones in state cemeteries, and sometimes beaten or imprisoned. New believers are often isolated, living in fear, yet they testify to an overwhelming joy in discovering the depth and richness of the Bible. House churches are multiplying quietly, believers are being trained and equipped, and the gospel is spreading through one conversation, one family, one village at a time.
In this season of Ramadan, we know God sees Uzbekistan not as a closed country, but as a harvest fi eld where the seeds of the gospel are taking root and bringing forth fruit that will last for eternity.