On August 6, the Economic Forum of Central Asian Countries was held in Turkmenistan’s Avaza National Tourist Zone within the framework of the Third Consultative Meeting of Central Asian Leaders.

Government representatives, heads of key ministries and agencies of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan attended the event.

The welcoming address of the President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov was read out to the participants.

The event was organized in thematic sessions on several areas: interaction in the trade-economic and investment spheres, cooperation in the energy and chemical industries, as well as in transport and logistics. The current state and prospects for the development of multilateral cooperation were discussed. Proposals for further cooperation between the countries of the region were forwarded and considered.

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Significant potential for increasing the volume of intraregional trade was noted – over the past few years, the trade turnover of Uzbekistan with the countries of the Central Asian region has doubled and reached $5 billion in 2020. In this context, the prospects for the development of e-commerce were emphasized, including through the creation of a single electronic trading platform, where entrepreneurs and exporters of Central Asian countries will be able to interact directly and reach mutually beneficial agreements. The need for further improvement of the regulatory framework in foreign economic activity and the consistent elimination of trade barriers was also noted.

Intensive development of industrial cooperation was also identified as a priority area of cooperation, which will allow using the complementary advantages of the economies of the countries of the region and forming continuous intraregional value chains. It was noted that over the past five years, the number of enterprises in Uzbekistan with the participation of companies from neighboring countries has increased 6 times and now amounts to 1,600. Specific examples of successful implementation of industrial cooperation projects in the production of building materials, cars and household appliances, textile, leather and footwear products, as well as in agriculture were presented.

The main attention was paid to improving the transport connectivity of the countries of the region, as a key factor for sustainable economic development, attracting investment and stimulating regional trade. It was noted that the growth of the volume of cargo transportation in Central Asia, observed in 2020 despite the restrictions caused by the pandemic, indicates significant opportunities for further expansion of international roads and railways and strengthening of transport logistics infrastructure. In this regard, the Uzbek side proposed to intensify cooperation on the development of transport corridors connecting the Central Asian states, increase the efficiency of using the transit potential of the countries of the region, as well as the harmonization and digitalization of customs clearance procedures for goods.

Participants exchanged constructive ideas on further strengthening multilateral cooperation and promoting regional economic interests. Following the event, a common position was developed on the need for developing a multilateral dialogue aimed at identifying new growth points of the economies of the countries of the region.

Bilateral meetings and negotiations were also held within the framework of the Forum.

UzA