South and Central Asia to establish enormous trade
and transport corridor
Ashgabat, 2 August 2003 (nCa) --- Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and
Uzbekistan signed Friday a protocol in Manila to establish a north-south and east-west
trade and transport corridor, paving way to connect Central Asia with the warm waters of
Indian Ocean. Iran attended the ADB sponsored meeting as an observer and Turkmenistan is
being invited for the next meeting.
The proposed trade and transportation arterial system would dovetail as
a perfect interface for the north-south corridor being marketed by Russia and India and
TRACECA project promoted by European Union.
A 2-days ministerial meeting of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and
Uzbekistan, facilitated by ADB (Asian Development Bank) culminated in firm agreement to
establish the Central and South Asia Transport and Trade Forum (CSATTF).
ADB will act as secretariat of the forum. Chairmanship will rotate
among the member countries.
Iran was present as observer and Turkmenistan will be invited for the
next meeting in December in Manila.
"Over the past two days we have been laying the foundations for
better connectivity and economic integration in the sub-region," said Yoshihiro
Iwasaki, Director General of ADB's South Asia Department.
All participants agreed that establishment of such a corridor would
guarantee economic prosperity and political stability in the entire region.
Pakistan has offered 3 ports for integration with the proposed
corridor: Karachi, Port Qasim and Gawadar. Iran has offered Bander Abbas and Chahbahar.
Protocols signed by the participants identified following areas where
bottlenecks exist and where joint effort would be required:
(i) Legal barriers
(ii) Customs harmonization
(iii) Cross border relations and transit agreements
(iv) Security
(v) Lack of border crossing joint infrastructure including parking and
cargo checking facilities, weighbridges and telecommunications
(vi) Discriminatory measures against foreign transport operators
(vii) Transparency and access to information
(viii) Underdeveloped logistics services
(ix) Reputation the region has been given in regard to narcotics
production
Need for accession of Participating Countries to international
transport and trade conventions to promote transport and trade was also acknowledged.
These conventions are:
Convention on Road Traffic (1968)
Convention on Road Signs and Signals (1968)
Customs Convention on the International Transport of Goods under Cover
of the TIR Carnets (1975)
Customs Convention on the Temporary Importation of Commercial Road
Vehicles (1956)
Customs Convention on Containers (1972)
International Convention on the Harmonization of Frontier Control of
Goods (1982)
Convention on the Contract for the International Carrying of Goods by
Road (1956)
Pakistan minister of finance and economic affairs, Shaukat Aziz, Afghan
minister of telecommunications, Massom Stanekzai, Tajik deputy prime minister Asadullo
Gulomov and Uzbek deputy prime minister Elyor Ganiyev led their respective delegations.
Abdolhoussein Vahaji, deputy minister of commerce was at the head of
Iranian delegation.
ADB was represented by Yoshihiro Iwasaki, director general South Asia
Department and Satish Rao, deputy director general East and Central Asia Department.
Founding members agreed to the following objectives for the forum:
Provide a vehicle for coordination of project planning at the
subregional level (e.g. studies covering multiple countries);
Provide a mechanism for facilitating the implementation of priority
subregional projects;
Promote the financing of subregional projects by the governments
concerned, bilateral and multilateral financing sources, and the private sector;
Provide a venue for addressing trade and customs issues;
Facilitate capacity building activities in the trade and transport
sector as they relate to promotion of subregional cooperation; and
Promote dissemination and exchange of information on trade and
transport related matters.
newscentralasia.com
nCa Report
August 3, 2003 |