Accession of Turkmenistan to the World Trade Organization: Technical Working Sessions on the Memorandum of Foreign Trade Regime

On 3-14 July 2023, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) organized technical working sessions on the Memorandum of Foreign Trade Regime (MFTR) – a key document for WTO accession negotiations. Building on the Roundtable and Donor Engagement to Support Turkmenistan’s Accession to the World Trade Organization held on 30 May 2023 in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, the technical sessions supported the preparation of MFTR’s sections on economic policy, foreign trade and related legislative framework.   

More than 40 officials from the ministries and agencies involved, led by the Ministry of Finance and Economy of Turkmenistan, participated in the technical sessions. The representatives of the WTO Secretariat elaborated on the accession process, structure of the MFTR, and WTO rules and requirements. The ADB experts presented provisions of the WTO agreements related to key sections of the MFTR and shared the experience of recently acceded WTO members, particularly from Central Asia, in bringing their legislation into compliance with the WTO rules. 

The activity is supported under KSTA 9712: Implementing the Integrated Trade Agenda in the CAREC Program, co-funded by the Regional Cooperation and Integration Fund and the PRC Poverty Reduction and Regional Cooperation Fund (PRCF).