C5+1: USAID head announces additional $14.3 million investment in Central Asia
United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Samantha Power announced additional investments in Central Asia at the C5+1 Regional Ministerial Conference held on Tuesday, October 24, in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
The meeting on regional relations of the C5+1 format was attended by representatives of the governments of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. During the ministerial meeting, Power announced an additional $14.3 million to remove barriers to trade, develop a green economy, and combat disinformation.
The parties agreed to deepen cooperation to increase trade and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. To support greener energy use, USAID will expand cooperation with Central Asian countries and share strategies to reduce carbon emissions. These include expanding opportunities to use electricity generation more efficiently throughout the Central Asian region, as well as prioritizing emissions reduction through the introduction of new technologies and improved energy efficiency, the agency said in a press release.
To facilitate the exchange of goods across borders, USAID will support efforts to modernize customs systems in Central Asian countries. Each country will work to expand automation, using common protocols to reduce border transit times for goods. Many of these measures are key aspects of membership in the World Trade Organization.
In addition to the new agreements, Administrator Power announced the following USAID regional investments. Thus, the Agency will allocate $10.8 million to support private investment with grants for up to 100 micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. Preference will be given to start-ups in key sectors such as ICT and green economy. This project is projected to help create and improve jobs for 8,000 Central Asians, training women, youth and vulnerable populations with skills needed in the 21st century economy.
Another USAID initiative concerns information integrity in Central Asia. This new $1.5 million regional program will work with Central Asian partners to improve the quality of information online and in the media, and equip citizens with skills to detect and combat disinformation. USAID will support public campaigns to improve media literacy and counter disinformation.
Another area for investment is improving energy security and regional electricity trade. With an additional $2 million investment, USAID will work to increase private sector investment and mobilize climate finance to expand the use of renewable energy.
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