 Central Asia has five landlocked countries: Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries vary in population, type of government, and willingness to cooperate with each other and the rest of the world. But the region has established national identities and institutions, avoided violent conflicts, established the foundations for marketbased economies, and sustained an economic recovery since the end of the 1990s.
Consider many regional institutions and initiatives. The Central Asia Cooperation Organization (CACO) comprises Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, which merged with EURASEC (Eurasian Economic Community) in 2005. The Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Initiative (CAREC) comprises Azerbaijan, China, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) comprises China, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Then there are the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), and the Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA). The sheer number of regional agreements illustrate the problems that can arise from a disjointed regional approach. Regional initiatives in Central Asia can foster integration but add duplication and complexity to reform. The ongoing WTO accession for many of these countries could help, because the WTO has clear rules on regional trade agreements. Also needed are trade and transport facilitation initiatives and behind-the-border reforms to improve the countries’ attractiveness to FDI and bolster their global integration. (Countries with the highest cost of business entry have lower imports, exports, and FDI inflows.) Regional forums for business communities could offer suggestions and feedback on the design and implementation of trade and related policies. The region loses an estimated 3 percent of GDP annually because of poor water management. Agreements are also needed for oil and gas resources to reach international markets. Many environmental problems remain as a legacy from the Soviet era, such as radioactivity from abandoned uranium mines and dangerous remnants of biological and nuclear tests. Regional organizations could be rationalized around these key themes of trade and transport facilitation, water, energy, and environment management. They could develop long-term plans for these issues, bringing civil society and academic institutions into the fray. The international community could facilitate the strengthening of institutions with clear mandates and targets. Sources: Linn and Tiomkin 2006; Broadman 2005; United Nations 2005a.  |
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