Prof. Aggarwal invited to advise Central Asian ministers
Synopsis: The myriad examples of successful economic corridors in Asian countries show the power of corridors in mobilizing private and public investments, in promoting high-quality growth and jobs, and raising the knowledge-intensity of exports.
Economic recovery and favorable regional dynamics observed in Central Asia recently add further momentum to the development of regional economic corridors. The Almaty-Bishkek Economic Corridor under the Central Asia Region Economic Cooperation (CAREC) Program is one example of creating opportunities for joint projects in the areas of agriculture, tourism, health and transport. This cross-border agglomeration will allow businesses to specialize, operate at economies of scale and achieve greater diversification and competitiveness by exporting goods and services to the world. To expand the dynamic progress of the corridor development, CAREC initiated a new economic corridor among Kazakhstan (Shymkent), Uzbekistan (Tashkent), and Tajikistan (Khujand).
Aim: Enhance understanding on common issues of regional economic corridor development to promote economic growth in the CAREC region
Speakers:
• Shixin Chen, Vice-President, ADB
• Liliya Burunciuk, Regional Director, World Bank
• Ruslan Dalenov, Minister of National Economy, Kazakhstan
• Avtandil Alybaev, Deputy Minister of Economy, Kyrgyz Republic
• Shukhrat Vafaev, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade, Uzbekistan
• Nematullo Hikmatullozoda, Minister, Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, Tajikistan
• Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar, Minister, Ministry of Planning, Development and Reforms, Pakistan
• Leading business expert from Kazakhstan (to be provided by KARM)
• Aradhna Aggarwal, Professor of Copenhagen Business School
Questions for Panelists:
• How to select “winning” regional corridors that have a high chance of success? What are the prerequisites of successful corridors?
• In what ways can cross-border special economic zones (SEZs) and industrial parks (IPs) promote economic corridor development? What are the requirements for establishing successful SEZs and IPs?
• What are the roles of the private sector for economic corridor development? What policies are needed to maximize benefits of small and medium enterprises for participating in economic corridor development?
• In what ways can development institutions and regional platforms like the CAREC Program support the development of regional economic corridor development among CAREC countries?
• What will be the most effective institutional arrangement for coordinating and managing a regional economic corridor that crosses more than one country and involves sub-national entities? How to ensure coordinated role of governments at national, provincial and local level?