Turkmenistan is actively developing international exhibition activities and is considering the possibility of hosting a major world-class event. Among the proposals presented during a government meeting on Friday for consideration by President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov, an initiative was voiced to study the possibility of holding a specialized international exhibition EXPO dedicated to agriculture in the country in the coming years, jointly with the International Exhibitions Bureau (BIE).

As Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov reported, this promising idea was put forward in the context of the steps taken to develop international exhibition activities of Turkmenistan, which is an important factor in integrating the country into the global economic, cultural and information space. This work is being carried out in order to effectively implement the Concept of the Foreign Policy Course of Neutral Turkmenistan (2022-2028) and the Concept of Development of International Exhibition Activities of Turkmenistan (2024-2025).

Cooperation with the International Exhibitions Bureau is in an active stage. In particular, the National Plan for Expanding Interaction with the BIE for 2023-2025 has been developed and is being implemented. An important achievement was the first ever election of Turkmenistan to the Administrative and Budgetary Committee of this authoritative Organization for 2024-2025 at the 173rd session of the BIE General Assembly in Paris in November 2023. The next meeting of this committee with the participation of the BIE Secretary General was successfully held in Ashgabat on March 19 this year, which indicates a high level of trust.

It was in light of the intensification of contacts with the BIE that a proposal was put forward to hold a specialized EXPO on agriculture in Turkmenistan. This area is one of the priorities for the country's economy, and holding an exhibition of this scale would demonstrate Turkmenistan's achievements in the agricultural sector, attract advanced technologies and investments, and strengthen international cooperation in this area.

Among the related measures proposed to the President is the creation of a special fund for holding the above-mentioned exhibition and the organization of negotiations with large international companies to attract them to this project.

In addition, proposals were made to improve international exhibition activities in general, prepare a draft of the relevant document, and ensure a high level of Turkmenistan's participation in upcoming major specialized exhibitions abroad. These include the environmental exhibition GreenEXPO-2027 in Yokohama (Japan) and EXPO-2027 in Belgrade (Serbia), dedicated to sports and music. It is also planned to develop a program for 2025-2027 to organize seminars and improve the skills of Turkmen specialists in the exhibition and fair sphere together with leading countries and international organizations.

The study of the possibility of holding a specialized international exhibition EXPO on agriculture in Turkmenistan jointly with the BIE underlines the country's ambitions in developing key sectors of the economy and strengthening its status as an active participant in the global exhibition movement.

ORIENT