Thirty trade agreements have been signed between the private sectors of Afghanistan and Uzbekistan for a total amount of nearly $50 million, TOLOnews reports. At a bilateral trade connectivity conference, Afghanistan’s deputy minister of industry and commerce, Ahmadullah Zahid stressed the need to resolve trade challenges and increase Afghan exports to Uzbekistan. Davron Vakhabov, president
Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Agriculture says it continues a large-scale program to diversify agricultural crops area, with about 1 million hectares of farmland diversified across the country in 2025. The program is aimed at expanding the area under highly profitable and in-demand crops, both in the domestic and export markets. The main goal is to reduce
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), with support from the Government of Finland, organized the “Janyration Sanarip” incubation program to equip small and medium-sized entrepreneurs in Kyrgyzstan with the tools and knowledge needed to transition from traditional business models to digital-first operations, enabling them to grow and compete in the e-commerce market, UNDP Kyrgyzstan reported.
In 2024, Kazakhstan’s exports reached $81.6 billion, up 3.2% compared to 2023, with non-resource exports showing an impressive 11.9% growth, amounting to $28.8 billion, according to the Ministry of Trade and Integration. Imports totaled $59.8 billion, down 1% from the previous year. In 2025, Kazakhstan continues to maintain high export rates, which in January-February amounted
The first batch of Kazakh grain has departed by rail for Morocco. The train consisting of 105 grain railcars will traverse Russia to Latvia, where in the Baltic port of Liepaja, the grain will be reloaded onto sea vessels heading to the coast of North Africa, according to Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ), the country’s national
The Kazakhstan-Vietnam Business Roundtable was held in Astana on May 6 with the participation of officials, representatives of business and government agencies of the two countries. The event was held in the framework of the visit of the delegation of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam led by General Secretary of the Central Committee of the
The Afghan Ministry of Industry and Commerce announced that Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan recorded $66 million in trade during the past solar year, TOLOnews reported. The solar year begins in March. Akhundzada Abdul Salam Jawad, spokesperson for the ministry, said that $7 million of this figure represents Afghan exports, while the remaining amount was imports. Afghanistan’s
Kyrgyzstan ranks 117th out of 193 countries and territories, maintaining its position in the “High Human Development” category, according to the latest Human Development Index (HDI) in the 2025 Human Development Report (HDR) published by the United Nations Development Programme, UNDP Kyrgyzstan reported. Kyrgyzstan continues to make steady progress in advancing human development, with improvements
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is helping women-led micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Kazakhstan by extending a new term loan to a leading microlender KMF, which has been an EBRD client since 2005. The EBRD funds of up to US$ 25 million (€22.9 million) will help to promote women’s entrepreneurship and business
The inaugural dialogue of participants in the Export Accelerator Program—implemented by the Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade of Uzbekistan—was held in Tashkent on May 2. Launched in September 2024, the Export Accelerator has already facilitated the entry of 29 entrepreneurs into international markets. To date, these participants have achieved export deliveries totaling over $14
Kazakhstan is taking another step toward fostering international business. At the initiative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan new regulations have been approved for obtaining an investor visa, aimed at enhancing the country’s investment appeal and supporting long-term business partnerships. Under the new framework, foreign nationals who invest a minimum of 300,000 US
This year, Kazakhstan begins planting new orchards of aport apple trees in the Almaty region, the Ministry of Agriculture has announced. Aport is the legendary Kazakh apple variety, distinguished by its large size, distinct smell, and succulent nature. The new orchards are part of a national program to revive aport, implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture
Austria’s AVL List GmbH, a world leader in automotive technology development and testing, will participate in a project to establish a national testing and certification center for motor vehicles in Kazakhstan. A memorandum of understanding for the project has been signed between AVL List GmbH, Kazakh engineering firm LLP IAS, and Kazakh Invest national investment
On April 28, the plenary session of the fifth exhibition “INNOPROM. Central Asia – 2025” was held in Tashkent. INNOPROM. Central Asia is an annual international industrial exhibition held in the capital of Uzbekistan since 2021. “INNOPROM. Central Asia – 2025” covers an area of 18,000 square meters, with 4,143 square meters dedicated to Uzbekistan’s
On April 28, Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu and Stefano Manfredi, General Director of the Spanish company TUBACEX IBF Kazakhstan discussed the establishment in Kazakhstan of the first seamless pipe plant in Central Asia, producing pipes from stainless steel and nickel alloys. The project aligns with Kazakhstan’s strategic
The 4th meeting of the Uzbek-Chinese Working Group on Investment Cooperation was held in Tashkent on April 24. The meeting reviewed progress made in the investment sector. It was noted that the total volume of bilateral investments exceeded USD 10 billion in 2024, marking a 2.5-fold increase compared to 2023. Key discussion areas included: Strengthening investment and financial
In Astana, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Kazakh Invest national company, Madiyar Sultanbek met with representatives of Croatian company Sinitech Industries, Swedish company Ecolean, Kazakhstan’s AGRO HOLDING BAYAN, and the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR). According to Kazakh Invest, the parties discussed a project to build a powdered milk plant using innovative mineralization technology tailored to the needs
Kyrgyzstandart, the national standardization body under the Ministry of Economy and Commerce, has officially been accredited to certify food safety management systems in line with ISO 22000:2019. This accreditation positions Kyrgyzstan to independently certify food enterprises and reduce reliance on foreign institutions—lowering certification costs and helping producers enter international markets faster, the United Nations Development
On April 23, Laziz Kudratov, the Minister of Investments, Industry and Trade of Uzbekistan, participated in an international business forum held in Jizzakh. The event was organized as part of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s initiative to actively promote regional investment opportunities. The forum brought together senior representatives from ministries, government agencies, industry associations, and local authorities, along
Afghanistan’s economy is gradually recovering, but at a slow pace, and the outlook remains uncertain due to fiscal pressures, a widening trade deficit, and persistent poverty and food insecurity, says the World Bank’s latest Afghanistan Development Update. Afghanistan’s GDP is estimated to have grown 2.5 percent in 2024, marking the second consecutive year of economic expansion.
