Workshop on Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor: Infrastructure and Trade

The CAREC Institute in partnership with the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) held a webinar titled “Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor: Infrastructure and Trade” during 16-20 November 2020.

Experts from think tanks, universities, and other institutions deliberated on the potential of the trans-Caspian transport corridors to drive regional connectivity and sustainable economic growth; and assess trade, infrastructure, and institutional barriers as well as policies for addressing them.

Some of the topics included logistics policy analysis and network model simulation for cross-border transport; regional impact of the trans-Caspian infrastructure improvement in the era of post COVID-19; findings of the Corridor Performance Measurement and Monitoring (CPMM) mechanism and trade impediments of CAREC trans-Caspian corridors; infrastructure and firm performance in CAREC countries: cross-sectional evidence at the firm level, etc.

It was argued that there are prospects in transit, especially along the trans-Caspian route, if the trans-Caspian shipping capacity is enhanced, modern container terminals are developed, infrastructure operational and management costs are separated, a supranational legal framework harmonizes transportation tariffs along the corridor, free trade zones are developed to attract important value-added enterprises that contribute to promotion of new industries, the corridor opens up for private businesses, ICT integration is enhanced into transport operations, etc. The webinar recording is available here.