Pakistan to Host CAREC Ministerial Conference in Islamabad

Pakistan to Host CAREC Ministerial Conference in Islamabad

The Economic Affairs Division in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) will host the 15th Ministerial Conference of Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) countries (Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Georgia as an observer) from 25 – 26 October, 2016 at Islamabad. More than 200 participants from 10 member countries and multilateral development partners will attend the events.

On the first day of event, CAREC Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) will be held. Ms. Anjum Assad Amin, Additional Secretary, Economic Affairs Division & National Focal Point will co-chair the SOM. The National Focal Points and representatives from trade, transport and energy sectors from the member countries will participate in the SOM. During the SOM, key deliverables in the four priority sectors of CAREC (transport, energy, trade facilitation, and trade policy) will be presented. The draft report of Midterm Review of CAREC 2020 will also be presented.

On the second day, the Ministerial Conference will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister of Pakistan and co-chaired by the Finance Minister and President, Asian Development Bank. The representative of IMF will present the global economic outlook and its implications on the CAREC countries. The multilateral and bilateral development partners will share their input. The CAREC Ministers will consider the draft Joint Ministerial Statement with a view to finalizing and endorsing. Upon endorsement, arepresentative from the Government of Georgia will make a statement as a new CAREC member.

At the end, the Finance Minister will also have a retreat session with all the Heads of Delegations from the member countries and discuss issues of mutual interest.

Participants:

Member Countries: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, the People’s Republic of China, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Georgia as an observer.

Multilateral & Bilateral Development Partners: Asian Development Bank (ADB), European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), International Monetary Fund (IMF), Islamic Development Bank (IDB), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the World Bank (WB); representatives from CAREC Institute, Department for International Development, Deutsche Gesellschaftfuer Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), European Union, Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation & Development (BmZ), Japan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan International Cooperation Agency, U.S. Department of State, United States Agency for International Development, and World Trade Organization.