Growth remains broadly stable in the Caucasus and Central Asia (CCA), but it is still well below the long-term potential for the region — and too low if the region is to raise living standards to the level of other emerging economies in Europe and Asia. The challenge is to leverage good domestic policies, increased economic diversification, and stronger international cooperation to generate higher and more inclusive growth that lifts up the prospects of all CCA citizens. This task is complicated by global uncertainties, weaknesses in the banking sectors, and elevated public debt. This event coincides with the launch of the IMF's Departmental Paper: Promoting Inclusive Growth in the Caucasus and Central Asia presented by one of the authors, Mercedes Vera-Martin.
Speakers:
Juha Kähkönen, Deputy Director, Middle East and Central Asia Department, IMF
Mercedes Vera Martin, Deputy Division Chief, Middle East and Central Asia Department, IMF
Moderator: S. Frederick Starr,Chairman Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at the American Foreign Policy Council
Where: Middle East Institute: 1319 18th Street NW, 20036
When: Wednesday, June 4, 2019 from 4:00 - 5:30 pm,
The PowerPoint Presentations from both speakers are available below.
By S. Frederick Starr and Svante E. Cornell
Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst
May 12, 2018
Dramatic and important changes are taking place in Central Asia. For more than a year the region’s historic core and geopolitical focal point has been immersed in a whirlwind of reform without precedent in the region. At a time when one-man rule has been reinforced in China and Russia, when the rule of law is in abeyance in countries as diverse as South Africa and Venezuela, and when most Muslim majority societies appear to be receding into a new authoritarianism informed by religious ideology, Uzbekistan has instituted reforms that are ambitious in aim and extensive in scope.
It is far too early to say how it will all come out, or even how far it will go. But there is little doubt that that the current reforms are all organized around solid commitment to the rule of law, the rights of citizens, elective governance, an open market economy, religious tolerance, cordial relations with the great powers without sacrificing sovereignty, and a new embrace of the Central Asian region itself as an actor on the world state. It’s time for the world to take stock of this startling development.
The Central Asia-Caucasus Institute presented this spring's team of Rumsfeld Fellows, emerging leaders from the Caucasus, Afghanistan, Mongolia, and Central Asia (which the alumni themselves have dubbed the 'CAMCA Region.') At this session, they discussed how new platforms of digital connectivity between CAMCA countries can contribute to diversifying and strenthening of national economies, accelerate emerging regionalism in CAMCA and help to better integrate the region into the world economy.
Moderator:
S. Frederick Starr, Chairman, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute
For a list of the 2018 Spring Central Asia-Caucasus Fellows, a partnership between the Rumsfeld Foundation and American Foreign Policy Council's Central Asia-Caucasus Institute, click HERE.
For a link to the Rumfeld Fellows' Presentation, click HERE.
Where: The Middle East Institute, 1319 18th St. NW, Washington, DC 20036
When: Wednesday, May 2, 2018 from 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Since Shavkat Mirziyoyev became Acting President in September 2016, the Government of Uzbekistan has embarked on a series of far-reaching reforms in practically every area from foreign policy to governance and culture. A key element in the reform agenda has been the modernization of Uzbekistan’s economy. This Forum event marked the launch of another Silk Road Paper that analyzes this reform agenda. “Economic Modernization in Uzbekistan under President Mirziyoyev,” which was released on April 10, authored by Mamuka Tserereli.
The Forum event, moderated by CACI Chairman S. Frederick Starr, featured a summary of the published report, and commentary from representatives of the international financial institutions.
Speaker:
Mamuka Tsereteli, Senior Research Fellow, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute
Albert Jaeger, Mission Chief for Uzbekistan, IMF
David M Gould, Lead Economist, Europe and Central Asia Region, World Bank
Moderator: S. Frederick Starr, Chairman, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute
Where: The Middle East Institute, 1319 18th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036
When: Tuesday, April 10, 2018 from 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
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