Updated April 25, 2006.

CONFERENCE REPORT ONLINE

Organizers:
The Central Asia-Caucasus Institute (CACI) of Johns Hopkins University and the Institute of World Economy and Policy (IWEP) of the First Kazakhstan President Foundation

Objective:
The conference convened experts and officials from throughout Greater Central Asia to discuss how each country can benefit from region-wide trade, what it must do in order to reap these benefits, and how the U.S. can work in partnership with regional states to bring this about.  Conferees considered trade in all directions, but a main focus was on how each country can benefit from opening major transport routes to the Indian Ocean, South Asia, and beyond. Impediments in the areas of infrastructure and institutions were identified, as will be steps that might be taken jointly with the US to overcome them.

The conference is a private and independent initiative.  Its honorary chairmen are Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, Foreign Minister of Afghanistan, and Mr. Hedayat Amin Arsala, Minister of Commerce of Afghanistan and advisor to President Karzai.  Dr. S. Frederick Starr and Dr. Maulen Ashimbaev are co-directors of the project.  The conference included officials from all Central Asian states, as well as key U.S. officials. 

Please direct all inquiries to Mr. Matthew Corbin.
E-mail: mcorbin9@jhu.edu
Tel.: +1-202-663-7723 / +1-202-222-5906

More information on the conference's results will follow on this page.