CAREC Integrated Trade Agenda 2030: Stakeholders Consultation Workshop for Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Pakistan

CAREC is formulating a new trade agenda—CAREC Integrated Trade Agenda (CITA) 2030—to assist countries to integrate further with the global economy as envisioned by CAREC 2030.

A consultation about CITA 2030 and its accompanying Rolling Strategic Action Plan (RSAP) was conducted with trade-related agencies and development partners in Tbilisi with officials from Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Pakistan. The Tbilisi consultations brought together international trade experts, trade-related officials from Azerbaijan, Georgia and Pakistan, and development partners from Asian Development Bank, International Finance Corporation, United States Agency for International Development, United Nations Development Programme, and World Bank.

Participants provided useful direction in shaping CITA 2030 as well as ensuring its effective implementation. They confirmed the alignment of CITA’s overall objectives and scope with their own countries’ development priorities, namely those described in Azerbaijan’s Strategic Road Maps for the National Economy, Georgia’s Four-Point Reform Plan, and Pakistan’s National Vision 2025.

They also deliberated on each main component of the 3-year RSAP to improve market access, increase economic diversification, and enhance institutions for trade, providing their respective national priorities under each. The proposed Regional Trade Group, which will be the coordinating body for trade policy and trade facilitation issues, was then considered.