$18 billion plan to build new 'Silk Roads'

Eight countries on Saturday agreed to an $18 billion strategy to improve Central Asia’s network of roads, airports, railway lines and seaports to make the region a vital transit route for trade between Europe and Asia – a modern-day equivalent of the ancient Silk Road, according to ADB.
The plan was agreed at a meeting in Dushanbe, Tajikistan attended by Ministers from Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, People’s Republic of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, and supported by ADB and five other multilateral institutions.
“Central Asia is becoming a pivotal region in Eurasia, a vital land-bridge linking Europe, Russian Federation, People's Republic of China, South Asia, and the Middle East,” the Ministers said in a joint declaration at the end of the 6th Ministerial Conference of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) Program.
“The strategy will establish competitive transport corridors across the CAREC region, facilitate movement of people and goods across borders, and develop safe, dependable, effective, efficient, and fully integrated transport systems that are environmentally sustainable,” the statement said.
Even though Central Asia lies at the center of the Eurasian continent, less than 1% of all trade between Europe and Asia currently goes through the region. Inadequate transport infrastructure and cumbersome border processes have resulted in nearly all trade going by sea.
The plan calls for $18.7 billion investment over the next decade in six new transport corridors, mainly roads and rail links. About half of the funds are likely to come from multilateral organizations like ADB, while the rest will come from the countries themselves.
“This is a large and ambitious strategy. It encompasses dozens of projects and will require more than $18 billion in investments over the next decade,” ADB President Haruhiko Kuroda said in a speech at the conference.

Source:Transportweekly