ALMATY, Kazakhstan, June 29. International development banks are ready to continue investing in the development of the Middle Corridor, Secretary General of the Permanent Secretariat of the Intergovernmental Commission TRACECA Jasurbek Choriev told Trend.
He made the comment on the sidelines of the Annual Meeting and Business Forum of the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) in Almaty.
According to him, the European Union has already allocated $10 billion for the further development of the Middle Corridor’s infrastructure.
"I recently took part in a major conference in Brussels, attended by representatives of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the World Bank and other international financial institutions. They are all ready to continue investing in improving the Middle Corridor," Choriev said.
He noted that European partners view the development of the transport route as an integrated project spanning the Black Sea region, the Caucasus and Central Asia, with a particular focus on harmonising transport infrastructure.
According to Choriev, international financial institutions intend to continue financing projects regardless of whether alternative routes emerge.
"They understand that if the Middle Corridor is neglected today, they will still have to return to its development tomorrow in order to fully utilise its potential. That is why they will continue investing in it," he said.
Choriev said the Middle Corridor has become one of the key transport routes between Europe and Asia. Restrictions on the Northern Corridor, instability along southern routes and the high cost of shipping around Africa have made the Middle Corridor the most sought-after alternative.
Speaking about transit digitalisation, Choriev recalled that Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Ukraine became the first among the 14 TRACECA member countries to sign an agreement on transitioning from a paper-based permit system to a unified digital transit system.
The TRACECA Secretary General stressed that this is only the first stage. Further accession of other member states will depend on the completion of internal approval procedures in each country. At the same time, he estimated that by the end of the year, the number of countries joining the agreement could double.
