The Governing Council of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) Institute has appointed Mr. Kabir Jurazoda as its new Director, effective on November 11.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) Tajikistan Resident Mission (TJRM) says a national of Tajikistan, Mr. Jurazoda has over 25 years of professional experience in public service and public finance management, regional economic cooperation and integration, public social policy, strategic planning, monitoring, and evaluation.

He has experience in developing policy papers, policy briefs, and reports. Prior to joining the CAREC Institute, Mr. Jurazoda was an Advisor in the Office of the Aide to the Tajikistan President for Economic Affairs.

The CAREC Institute is an intergovernmental organization dedicated to promoting economic cooperation in Central Asia and along the Silk Road through knowledge generation and sharing. The Institute is headquartered in Urumqi, the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

The CAREC Institute is jointly shared, owned, and governed by eleven CAREC member countries: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, the PRC, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

CAREC member countries rotate the position of the Institute’s director in alphabetical order.  The new director is nominated by the government of a respective member country and appointed by the Institute’s Governing Council for a term of two years.

CAREC promotes economic growth and sustainable development through cooperation among its member countries, supported by development partners.  Since 2001, CAREC-related financing amounted to over US$41 billion for 218 regional projects including US$15.6 billion from ADB; US$16.3 billion from other development partners; and US$9 billion from CAREC governments.

The projects have helped to increase road and railway efficiency, streamline border-crossings, and improve access to energy for millions of people. ADB is the secretariat of the CAREC Program.

Established in 1966, the Asian Development Bank is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.