The most pressing problem facing the Middle Corridor countries is the high degree of fragmentation of trade relations, Aleksi Aleksishvili, Chairman of the Board and CEO of Policy and Management Consulting Group, said during a seminar on Pan-Asia Power Grid Initiative held at the 59th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Report informs.
"This fragmentation is due to both political factors and governance issues. For example, five of the eight countries are WTO members, while three have not yet joined. There are differences in the degree of participation in free trade zones. Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan are members of the Eurasian Economic Union. The remaining countries are not, although they have a CIS agreement in place, which is essential for tariff regulation," the chairman of the board noted.
According to him, the persistent disunity is compounded by difficulties in economic governance.
"This primarily affects the customs sector: customs authorities in various countries often fail to coordinate their activities. Digitalization has not been implemented, procedures have not been established, and regulations are not unified. This also includes creating a favorable environment for doing business-a fundamentally important aspect. A number of countries are showing positive progress in this area, including Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan. I believe we need to fill these gaps as quickly as possible," Aleksishvili emphasized.