Political economist: Necessary to expand innovative co-op between Azerbaijan, Central Asia

Azerbaijan and Central Asian countries should expand cooperation in the innovation sector, political economist from Uzbekistan Bahrom Rajabov told Report.

“We must try to prevent the degradation of industries, but at the same time not to forget about technology startups and innovative businesses,” he said.

The expert emphasized that there are already excellent examples in Central Asia that have gone beyond just e-commerce and a digital payment system.

Rajabov noted that the partnership of Turkic countries within the Organization of Turkic States is extremely important. Uzbekistan is also actively considering cooperation along the Uzbekistan-Kazakhstan-Azerbaijan axis, he added.

“In general, Central Asia and the Caucasus have great potential for cooperation. Transport, trade, economics and investment - cooperation is already underway in these areas,” he noted.

However, there are studies showing that transport corridors will help develop the service sector, but may lead to deindustrialization, he said. Therefore, emphasis could be placed on industrial cooperation in different sectors, he added.