A C5+1 business conference was held in Washington, D.C. on November 6, marking the 10th anniversary of the partnership between the Central Asian countries and the United States.
The event brought together representatives of governments, national companies, and leading businesses from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and the United States. The main theme of the conference was the expansion of trade, economic, and investment cooperation between Central Asia and the United States.
Participants discussed opportunities for attracting U.S. investment into Central Asia’s infrastructure, energy, and innovation projects; expanding exports of rare earth metals, metal products, and agricultural goods to the U.S. market; as well as developing digital and financial technologies.
The forum featured five thematic sessions focused on supply chain development, the use of artificial intelligence, the digital economy, and investment opportunities in the U.S. and Central Asia.
Kazakhstan co-moderated the session on digital economy development, which discussed prospects for digitalization, artificial intelligence integration, cybersecurity, and cross-border online services, according to the Kazakh Foreign Ministry.
During the panel discussions, it was highlighted that Astana remains Washington’s key trade and economic partner in Central Asia, accounting for over 60% of the region’s GDP and 75% of its trade with the United States. Since independence, Kazakhstan has attracted more than 100 billion dollars in U.S. investment, and the country’s share in total investment across Central Asia exceeds 80%.
