Background Information CLDP’s Trans-Caspian Trade Route (TCTR) project is funded by the U.S. Department of State and supports the C5+1 goals to expand and develop alternative trade routes for Central Asian countries to mitigate trade disruptions and diversify export destinations. The project involves government and private sector representatives from the Central Asian countries, as well as Georgia...

From July 22 – 25, 2024, CLDP hosted a workshop for Central Asian women artisans in Yerevan, Armenia, with a focus on export promotion and exchange of experience, and best practices. Participants engaged in classroom style instruction and visited local artisan studios and cultural centers to gain...

From July 16-18, in Almaty, Kazakhstan, CLDP convened government officials from Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, as well as experts from the office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and Customs and Border Control, to...

Central Asia faces considerable frictions in electronic cross-border payments that curtail domestic transactions, trade and ecommerce. At the same time, the region seeks to build an inclusive ecommerce framework, to promote women’s full participation in digital trade and economic activity.  To...

From April 15-17, CLDP, in cooperation with the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, will hold a meeting of the Central Asia Regional Expert-Level SPS Working Group in Almaty, Kazakhstan. This standing working group of representatives from Kazakhstan, the...

Under the Central Asia Women’s Economic Empowerment project, CLDP supported a year-long mentorship initiative for a group of Central Asian women artisans eager to scale their small enterprises and expand regional trade. The culmination of our collective effort, in partnership with the Smithsonian...

From December 4-8, 2023, CLDP, in coordination with the Department of State, Bureau of South and Central Asia and the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office, organized the Central Asia Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) Working Group meeting on the margins of UNCTAD e-Week. The program fostered a public...

On September 25-27, CLDP hosted its third Central Asia Public Private Partnership Information Exchange Workshop in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic with participants from Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan to help foster interregional dialogue and cooperation on PPPs. PPPs are a...

From September 6-8, CLDP, in cooperation with the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, held a meeting of the Central Asia Regional Expert-Level SPS Working Group in Tbilisi, Georgia. This standing working group of representatives from Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz...

From September 4 - 8, 2023, 80 Government officials, civil society, and private sector representatives from Central Asia and the United States will gather for a Central Asia Regional Inclusive Digital Trade Program co-organized by CLDP and UNESCAP. This program will include U.S.-Central Asia...