A World Bank Delegation and the Ministry of Finance of Turkmenistan Are Holding a Round of Negotiations in Ashgabat
ORIENT | Economy. A working meeting was held in Ashgabat between Turkmenistan's Minister of Finance and Economy, Mammetguly Astanagulov, and World Bank Country Manager for Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, Andrey Mikhnev, and World Bank Operations Manager for the Central Asia Region, Indu John-Abraham. The practical outcome of the negotiations was the signing of a Consulting Services Agreement (RAS)—a Statistical Improvement Support Program aimed at supporting Turkmenstat's transition to the latest international standard, the 2025 System of National Accounts (SNA), and modernizing its GDP calculations.
The total budget for this project is $314,000, of which $264,000 was provided by Turkmenistan and $50,000 by the World Bank as technical assistance. The head of the department emphasized that this cooperation is based on the State Program for the Development of Foreign Economic Activity for 2026–2030, approved by President Serdar Berdimuhamedov, as well as the Roadmap for the implementation of the Document on Interaction with the Country (DIC) for 2026–2027.
The talks at the Ministry of Finance demonstrated that Ashgabat's partnership with the World Bank encompasses fundamental aspects of public sector modernization. During the meeting, Minister Astanagulov announced the launch of consultations on the transition to a "green and circular economy" and the digitalization of transport, agriculture, and education.
The parties conducted a detailed review of the current status of the Roadmap, identifying several priority areas. In particular, the regional "One Health" project is actively being implemented to prevent pandemics and ensure the resilience of food systems in Central Asia.
In the energy sector, Turkmenistan's Ministry of Energy confirmed its integration into the Regional Electricity Market, Interconnectivity, and Trade (REMIT) initiative, which will be launched with the Bank's technical support. At the global level, the official inclusion of Turkmenistan's macroeconomic indicators in key World Bank analytical publications, including the Global Macroeconomic and Welfare Outlook (GMO), was a significant success.
Environmental sustainability and compliance with the Paris Agreement were a particular priority on the agenda. As part of the Global Partnership on Methane Flaring and Methane Emissions Reduction (GFMR), several technical missions have already been conducted in Turkmenistan to assess monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) systems and leak detection. The Turkmen side confirmed its readiness to expedite the preparation of grant agreements and launch large-scale project activities to reduce methane emissions in the oil and gas sector.
The parties also discussed water resources management in detail during the visit of World Bank Regional Director Nadji Benhassine. Turkmenistan expressed its willingness to send specialists to Uzbekistan to study digital, automated water management systems and approved a pilot project for the comprehensive modernization of hydraulic structures and the introduction of water-saving technologies in fields in one of the country's agricultural regions.
In the area of improving the investment climate, the parties agreed to intensify targeted technical assistance to ensure the full and timely reflection of Turkmenistan's economic indicators in the World Bank's annual Business Ready (B-READY 2025) international rating.
