CAREC intergovernmental think tank officially launched in China
On 8 September, intergovernmental research Institute of the Central Asian Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) opened in the Chinese city of Urumqi.
The ceremony was attended by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Takehiko Nakao, the Minister of Finance of China Xiao Jie, Director of the Institute Sanjaasuren Bayaraa and more than 100 delegates from the member-countries and partner organizations.
The co-founders of the new organization are Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, China, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
In fact, the CAREC Institute has existed since 2006 as a virtual space where, through web-based materials, seminars and trainings, the parties moved towards the accumulation and dissemination of intellectual resources on key topics such as energy, trade and transport. Physical place launching of Institute in Urumqi took place in 2015.
From now on, after the legal framework of activities has been finalized, the Institute will directly promote cooperation between the region's research institutions in the field of infrastructure development, financial and economic stability, establishment of trade corridors, water management and agricultural planning.
The analytical work will also cover such humanitarian areas as tourism, education and health.
The finance minister of the host country expressed the hope that the new CAREC platform, whose future progress will be built on the efforts of the regional countries, will turn into powerful catalyst for the joint implementation of the "One Belt One Road" initiative.
During opening remarks ADB head emphasized the readiness of this multilateral financial organization to provide comprehensive support to the Institute in becoming a center of research, knowledge, and capacity building in the CAREC region.
