BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 1. The World Bank and Turkmenistan discussed cooperation on water and transport during talks held in Tashkent.
This was reported by the World Bank's Europe and Central Asia regional office in a post on X following a meeting between World Bank Vice President for Europe and Central Asia Antonella Bassani and Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank of Turkmenistan Merdanguly Palivanov.
"With Central Bank of Turkmenistan Deputy Chairman Merdanguly Palivanov, World Bank ECA VP Antonella Bassani discussed the country's progress under the Country Engagement Note, expressing World Bank Group readiness to provide support for key priorities like water and transport," the post said.
According to the bank, the meeting took place on the sidelines of the World Bank Group-IMF Constituency Meetings, where representatives of the EDS24 constituency also discussed regional connectivity, private sector mobilization and open, inclusive trade in Central Asia.
To note, Turkmenistan has been cooperating with the World Bank since joining the institution in 1992. In recent years, the partnership has increasingly focused on technical assistance rather than large-scale lending, covering areas such as economic modernization, statistical reform, climate resilience, water management, energy connectivity and private sector development.
The World Bank's current Country Engagement Note for FY2026-2027 identifies support for economic modernization as a key priority. Among the focus areas are the modernization of macroeconomic statistics, participation in the Regional Electricity Interconnectivity and Trade Initiative (REMIT), methane emissions reduction in the oil and gas sector, WTO accession support, financial sector development and improvements to the business environment through the Business Ready program.
