The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the U.S. Embassy in Turkmenistan jointly convened the Second Coordination Meeting of the Sustainable Economy and Finance (SEF) Working Group on March 20 in Ashgabat, UNDP Turkmenistan reported. The participants of the meeting, representing the Government of Turkmenistan and the country’s diplomatic community, were informed about the current
Cardiff University has announced the establishment of a new campus in Astana, Kazakhstan, set to open later this year. This milestone marks a significant step in the university’s ongoing global development and its commitment to delivering world-class education in Central Asia. According to the Kazakh Ministry of Science and Higher Education, Cardiff University Kazakhstan will
On March 22, in Baku, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kyrgyz Republic to Azerbaijan Maksat Mamytkanov took part in the ceremony of handing over 10 fire trucks provided by Azerbaijan free of charge. This step is aimed at strengthening the material and technical base of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Kyrgyz Republic
On March 21, the UN General Assembly adopted the Resolution “Permanent Neutrality of Turkmenistan.” The resolution recommends that the territories of neutral countries should be used for peace talks, the Turkmen Foreign Ministry reported. Introducing the Resolution, Permanent Representative of Turkmenistan to the United Nations Aksoltan Atayeva emphasized that the status of permanent neutrality is
On March 16, the Ambassador of the Kyrgyz Republic to the United Kingdom, Ulan Djusupov, participated in a roundtable discussion on Central Asia and a cultural program organized by Cambridge University with the support of the embassies of Central Asian countries. The roundtable gathered ambassadors of Central Asian countries, the Ambassador of Azerbaijan, Lord John
On March 18, Kazakhstan’s capital hosted the first meeting of the Association of Investors of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states. The founding meeting was attended by representatives of government agencies, as well as more than 20 investment agencies and funds of the SCO member states, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry reported. The participants of
The EU has reinforced its commitment to Tajikistan through key investments under its Global Gateway investment initiative, focusing on Tajikistan’s economic resilience, green and digital transitions and infrastructure development. During his visit to the country, EU Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jozef Síkela announced new funding initiatives aimed at strengthening the country’s sustainable development, the Delegation of the European Union to Tajikistan
On March 11, Tashkent hosted the “High-Level Policy Dialogue: Scaling up Financing and Investment for Environmental Goals in Central Asia,” organized by the Ministry of Ecology, Environmental Protection and Climate Change of Uzbekistan, the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection of Germany (BMUV), the European Bank for Reconstruction and
A delegation of the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) met with representatives of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) at the IRENA headquarters in Abu Dhabi on March 11. During the meeting, the organizations discussed cooperation in the development of renewable energy in Central Asia within the framework of two platforms – IRENAClimate Investment Platform (CIP) and IRENA Energy Transition Accelerator
Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Japan Yerlan Baudarbek-Kozhatayev on March 5 held a meeting with Hiromasa Nakano, Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism of Japan. The Ambassador introduced the current status and prospects of the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR or Middle Corridor) as one of the key multimodal transit corridors connecting
The newly appointed European Union Special Representative for Central Asia, Ambassador Eduards Stiprais, paid working visit to Turkmenistan on 4-6 March. He arrived in Ashgabat just three days after his appointment, underlining the importance the European Union places on its engagement with Turkmenistan and Central Asia, the EU Delegation to Turkmenistan reported. During his visit,
On 4-6 March, the Border Management Programme in Central Asia (BOMCA 10), which is funded by the European Union (EU), successfully conducted a regional workshop “Women for Development of Central Asian Border Regions” in Bukhara, Uzbekistan. This initiative underscores the EU’s commitment to enhancing gender equality and empowering female professionals within state agencies across Central Asia,
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) recently hosted the final event of the “Drops of the Future” workshop series. The event brought together young leaders, experts, and key stakeholders from Central Asia and beyond to explore collaborative and consensus-driven approaches to finding sustainable solutions for water, energy and food systems. The goal was
On March 1, Laziz Kudratov, the Minister of Investment, Industry, and Trade of Uzbekistan, held a meeting with a delegation led by Afghan Minister of Industry and Commerce Nuruddin Azizi, who was visiting the Termez International Trade Centre in Uzbekistan’s Surkhandarya region, at the border with Afghanistan. The meeting discussed trade and economic relations between
On February 27, Kyrgyzstan officially launched the preparation of its first Biennial Transparency Report (BTR1) under the Enhanced Transparency Framework of the Paris Agreement. This significant event, organized by the Ministry of Natural Resources, Ecology, and Technical Supervision of the Kyrgyz Republic in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), marks an important step
The first Uzbekistan Country Platform Roundtable of the year convened on February 25, reaffirming the joint commitment of the government and international partners to advance the implementation of the Uzbekistan-2030 Strategy. Over 90 representatives reviewed the progress made towards green growth and public finance management (PFM) and discussed an assessment of agriculture subsidies, while highlighting
Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan will build a new border checkpoint, Kazinform reported quoting Kazakh Minister of Transport Marat Karabayev as saying following the meeting of the Kazakh and Kyrgyz prime ministers in Astana on February 24. According to Karabayev, in 2024, the volume of automobile transportations between the two countries reached 2.4 million tons of cargo,
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Alibek Kuantyrov on February 24 held meetings with senior officials from Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Ministry of Petroleum Resources. These discussions as part of the official visit of the Kazakh delegation were aimed to enhance economic and political cooperation between the
The Council of the European Union (EU) has appointed Mr Eduards Stiprais as the new EU Special Representative for Central Asia. Stiprais will take up his duties on 1 March 2025 with an initial mandate of two years, succeeding Terhi Hakala. According to the European Council, the task of the new Special Representative will be to promote relations between
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) announced the launch of a new initiative aimed at strengthening the handicraft value chain in Kyrgyzstan as part of the Aid for Trade project. This project is designed to enhance the production and export potential of Kyrgyzstan’s traditional felt and leather products (handicrafts), which have growing demand in both foreign markets
