CAREC Session at 9th WTO Ministerial Conference

Panelists (left to right): Chiedu Osakwe, Director-Accessions Division, WTO; Pradeep Srivastava, Principal Economist and Unit Head, CAREC, ADB; Arancha Gonzalez, Executive Director, International Trade Center; Mozammil Shinwari, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Afghanistan; Saidrahmon Nazriev, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, Tajikistan; Minister Zhanar Aitzhanova, Ministry of Economic Integration, Kazakhstan; Hong Zhu, Deputy Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of PRC to WTO (Moderator)
Panelists (left to right): Chiedu Osakwe, director, Accessions Division, WTO; Pradeep Srivastava, principal economist and unit head, CAREC, ADB; Arancha Gonzalez, executive director, International Trade Center; Mozammil Shinwari, deputy minister, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Afghanistan; Saidrahmon Nazriev, deputy minister, Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, Tajikistan; Minister Zhanar Aitzhanova, Ministry of Economic Integration, Kazakhstan; Hong Zhu, deputy permanent representative, Permanent Mission of PRC to WTO (moderator)

The Asian Development Bank (ADB), in partnership with the World Trade Organization (WTO), conducted a session on the CAREC Program at the Bali Trade and Development Symposium on the sidelines of the 9th WTO Ministerial Conference.

The session, Regional Cooperation and Trade in Central Asia: Integrating into the Global Economy,

  • introduced the CAREC Program,
  • discussed new strategies for trade policy and trade and transport facilitation in Central Asia, and
  • discussed successful and ongoing efforts by CAREC countries to accede to the WTO.

Participants also discussed the importance of WTO membership in promoting Central Asian trade and were introduced to CAREC’s role in supporting transport and trade facilitation.

Panelists included CAREC government ministers or deputy ministers as well as representatives of ADB, WTO, and the International Trade Center.

Five CAREC members–the People’s Republic of China, the Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Pakistan, and Tajikistan–are WTO members.

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