First CAREC Trade Policy Sector Coordinating Committee

The first meeting of the Trade Policy Coordinating Committee (TPCC) was held in advance of the Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) in September. The purpose of the meeting  is to draft a possible agenda of work for the TPCC, which could be presented to the September SOM for approval.

The meeting discussed World Trade Organization (WTO) accession issues, key regional and bilateral trade issues, and possible topics/issues for future work by the TPCC. In particular, countries that have already acceded to the WTO — the People’s Republic of China, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Mongolia — noting benefits such as increased trade volumes and improved access to information on trade policies in other countries.