The Fifth CAREC Think Tank Development Forum “Economic Corridors: Pathways to Regional Growth”

The forum is themed “Economic Corridors: Pathways to Regional Growth.” The CTTDF is organized annually under the auspices of the CAREC Think Tanks Network (CTTN) which was established in 2017 during the second forum. The forum is meant to provide innovative solutions for promoting economic cooperation by recognizing the importance of regional perspectives. Today, numerous prominent think tanks and universities from 11 countries of the CAREC region are members. The CTTN tries to enhance systemic regional knowledge sharing; foster policy research and knowledge solutions to support governments; enable better policy advice; reduce gaps between research and policy; and enhance collective intelligence to consolidate development resources for effective cooperation, better services, and improved performance.

The 5th forum discusses the Almaty-Bishkek economic corridor, Shymkent-Tashkent-Khujand corridor, China-Pakistan economic corridor, and related topics. It is argued that economic corridors which are characterized by superior connectivity (including transport and digital connectivity), seamless movement of goods and people across borders, extensive cross-border trade and investment flows, also cross-border value-chains and clusters of economic activity, can help CAREC members attract more FDI and international tourists; develop urban agglomerations, manufacturing and the service sector; and diversify the composition of exports beyond primary commodities.