DUSHANBE, 21.11.2023 (NIAT Khovar) – On November 20, the 18th meeting of the working group of the UN Special Program for the Economy of Central Asia (SPECA) on trade was held in Baku.

It was attended by deputy ministers and representatives of Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, as well as representatives of authoritative international organizations.

The meeting was chaired by the Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Tajikistan Ahliddin Nuriddinzoda.

He opened the meeting and, as chairman of the working group, provided detailed information on the work done within SPECA, including issues related to strengthening cooperation among SPECA member states, the SPECA trade facilitation strategy, expansion and further implementation of goals for sustainable trade in region, research and recommendations related to non-tariff barriers.

It was emphasized that the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon identified the strengthening of export potential, diversification of exports and simplification of trade procedures as priority areas of the economic policy of the Government of the country in the field of trade, as a result of which work was carried out in Tajikistan to simplify trade procedures.

In particular, the Coordination Committee for Facilitation of Trade Procedures was created, as well as the trade portal of Tajikistan and the “Single window for processing export, import and transit transactions in Tajikistan” system were officially put into operation. It was adopted several trade-related strategic documents, which contribute to the implementation of SPECA’s strategic goals at the proper level and strengthening regional trade integration.

It was noted that trade cooperation with SPECA member states is in the development stage, including foreign trade turnover between Tajikistan and the states of the SPECA region in the nine months of this year amounted to 26 percent.

Also, during the meeting, experts from the international organization presented reports on the topics discussed at the event and the development of regional relations.

It should be noted that Tajikistan chairs the SPECA working group on trade, and its meetings are held annually as part of SPECA events in one of the region’s countries.