2025 SPECA Economic Forum: “International Year of Peace and Trust: Regional Connectivity for Sustainable Development”

Background: The United Nations Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA) was established on 26 March 1998 by the Tashkent Declaration signed by the Presidents of the Central Asian countries and the Executive Secretaries of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) as a United Nations special programme to support the countries in their efforts for economic development, cooperation and integration into the economies of Europe and Asia. The current SPECA participating States are Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. UNECE and ESCAP jointly provide overall support to the activities within the framework of the Programme in close collaboration with the UN Resident Coordinators in the SPECA participating States with the overall aim to support the sustainable development of the SPECA participating States and their integration in the European and Asia economies. In 2025, Turkmenistan is chairing the Programme and will host the SPECA Week in Ashgabat from 20 to 23 January 2026. 
Purposeful long-term cooperation with the UN, including UNECE and ESCAP, is a strategic vector of Turkmenistan’s foreign policy. Cooperation with the two UN economic commissions and strengthening the economic ties of the SPECA countries with Europe and Asia is of particular importance. Located at the crossroads of trade and transport routes, the SPECA region has served for centuries as a bridge between East and West, as well as North and South. Close contacts between the peoples of these countries have opened the way for dynamic progress in the political, economic, and humanitarian fields. Strengthening existing ties is becoming increasingly urgent, considering the current geopolitical transformations, which present both challenges and opportunities. Foresight and cooperative decision-making are needed to ensure stability and resilience. Turkmenistan and the other SPECA States are taking consistent actions to achieve the set of goals, which will further contribute to the region’s development.
The participating States support the expansion of the SPECA scope to include digitalization, green development, and logistics corridor projects. Recognizing that connectivity, cooperation, and dialogue are the foundation of stability, sustainable development, and raising living standards, Turkmenistan, as the 2025 Chair of SPECA, suggests to focus efforts on building an efficient regional market for goods, services, investment, and innovation. The contradictions and volatility in the global economy increasingly highlight the need to create a diversified and interconnected economic space. Turkmenistan is committed  to enhancing interregional economic connectivity, contributing to the comprehensive development of the region.