Wider Europe: Aid for Trade for Central Asia, South Caucasus and Western CIS -Components

Wider Europe: Aid for Trade for Central Asia, South Caucasus and Western CIS

Component I Aid for Trade Road Map in Central Asia: Identification of national and regional AfT priorities

The goal of this Component is to identify policy recommendations and technical assistance needs to improve the contribution of trade to human development and poverty reduction.

Project results include the development of National Aid for Trade Needs Assessment reports, which highlight capacity gaps and present related policy recommendations and an action matrix for potential donor assistance. The national studies also provide information for the AfT Regional Review (a document identifying regional needs) and the AfT Ministerial Meeting to be hosted by the Government of Azerbaijan in the fourth quarter of 2010.

AfT Needs Assessments have been conducted in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and, Uzbekistan, and presented during the AfT Roadmap for SPECA Expert Meeting in Kyrgyzstan. The Expert Meeting, which took place in Bishkek in March 2010, took stock of national and regional priorities and initiated the preparation for the Ministerial Meeting. Furthermore, the national AfT Needs Assessments will feed into a Regional AfT Review, which currently is elaborated.

Component II Aid for Trade in Central Asia: Support to Economic Development along Trade Corridors

The objective of Component II is to enhance private sector capacity in order to increase exports along selected priority transport corridors in Central Asia. The component targets Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), farmers and farmers’ cooperatives in Kazakhstan (Semey), Kyrgyzstan (Batken) and Tajikistan (Khujand). Activities under Component II are as follows:

Trade marketing baseline assessment for export promotion interventions;
Capacity building on trade mainstreaming;
Establishing regional export promotion centers;
Expanding SME’s access to financial services;
Promotion of environmentally friendly technologies and green commodity production.

The main goal is to share international standards and procedures, identify products with the biggest trade potential, improve understanding of markets and, within the context of human development, match potential trading partners. For example, in Kazakhstan the project assists the Women Entrepreneurs Association (WEA) with outreach activities for rural micro-entrepreneurs.

Component III Aid for Trade Needs Assessments in South Caucasus and Western CIS

The purpose of this component is the identification of capacity gaps (institutional, human, etc), and assess policy recommendations, and concrete proposals for AfT interventions. AfT Needs Assessments will be conducted in Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine. These national studies will serve as background studies for national debates on trade policy issues. Final papers will also be presented to international organisations in Geneva. Furthermore, the AfT Needs Assessments will provide the basis for the development of AfT project concept notes to be submitted to potential donors.

The Aid for Trade Road Map for SPECA, with its wide range of participating countries and organisations, offers an important opportunity for SPECA countries to work together with their neighbours and the international trade development community in order to meet the challenges they are facing.

The project is implemented by UNDP Bratislava Regional Centre and the respective UNDP country offices.