DUSHANBE, 24.11.2023 (NIAT Khovar) – On November 24, the Summit of the UN Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA) was held in Baku — the capital of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Honorable Emomali Rahmon, the Founder of Peace and National Unity — Leader of the Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan, took part and spoke at this Summit.

At the beginning of his speech, the President of the country, Emomali Rahmon, expressed his gratitude to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, for holding the Summit at a high level and for his warm hospitality, and at the same time congratulated brotherly Azerbaijan on successfully hosting SPECA.

The head of state emphasized that Tajikistan attaches great importance to the strengthening of mutually beneficial cooperation within the framework of SPECA.

In this regard, it was noted that approximately 30 percent of the foreign trade turnover of the Republic of Tajikistan falls on SPECA member states.

Most of the SPECA participating countries have taken a leading position among the trade and economic partners of the republic, and the turnover of Tajikistan’s foreign trade with the SPECA countries increased by 24 percent last year.

It was noted that SPECA member countries have great labor and natural resources and wide energy, transport and communication opportunities.

The head of state welcomed the establishment of the SPECA Trust Fund and suggested that in the coming years, attention should be paid to such priority areas as simplification of trade procedures and removal of artificial barriers, expansion of multi-modal transport and economic corridors, development of green economy and digitization.

In this regard, Tajikistan supports the establishment of the SPECA Secretariat.

It was mentioned that in recent years, a number of significant reforms have been implemented in Tajikistan to simplify trade procedures.

Today, half a million users from more than 100 countries of the world are registered on the Trade Portal of Tajikistan, which once again confirms its importance.

President Emomali Rahmon emphasized that the Republic of Tajikistan has ensured good achievements in the field of green energy and green economy in general.

Currently, 98 percent of the country’s electricity is produced in hydropower plants, and Tajikistan ranks sixth in the world in terms of green energy.

Within the framework of the Green Economy Development Strategy for 2023-2037, the Republic of Tajikistan intends to increase the capacity of green energy to 10 thousand megawatts.

In view of this, the Leader of the Nation suggested that SPECA should pay special attention to the development of green energy in order to ensure economic development, regional integration, prevention of adverse effects of climate change on sectors of the national economy and adaptation to climate change.

The President of Tajikistan, Honorable Emomali Rahmon, informed about the decision of the Government on the chairmanship of Tajikistan in SPECA in 2024. Within the framework of the Concept of the Presidency of the Republic of Tajikistan and its implementation plan, priorities are directed to strengthening the existing results and ensuring new achievements.

Following the meeting, the heads of SPECA participating states adopted the Baku Declaration.