Türkiye and Kyrgyzstan signed the 12th-Term Joint Economic Commission (JEC) Protocol on Thursday, addressing key areas such as bilateral trade, industry, energy, transportation, agriculture, education, healthcare, and culture.
Türkiye's Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz and Kyrgyz Cabinet of Ministers Chairman Adylbek Kasymaliev met in Bishkek, the Kyrgyz capital, to sign the protocol along with a new 77-article action plan, The Caspian Post reports citing Turkish media.
Speaking after the ceremony, Yılmaz said the countries are determined to meet trade volume targets set by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov: $2 billion in the short term and $5 billion in the medium term. These goals will be reviewed at the sixth meeting of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council in Bishkek in 2024.
Yılmaz added that the meeting addressed all aspects of economic and trade relations between the two countries and evaluated future steps in sectors with strong cooperation potential, such as healthcare, education, energy, industry, culture and tourism.
He noted that the action plan serves as a joint roadmap, setting concrete goals and identifying new areas of work across sectors including bilateral trade, industry and energy, transportation, agriculture, education, healthcare and culture.
Additionally, collaborations will be expanded in the mining sector, particularly in rare earth elements and critical minerals.
In industry and technology, joint efforts will focus on establishing industrial parks in Kyrgyzstan. A Kyrgyz-Turkish information technology (IT) meeting will also be held as part of the Kyrgyz IT Forum to discuss software development, startups and investments, Yılmaz said.
He added that cooperation will be strengthened in smart cities, digital transformation and e-government initiatives. In transportation, transit documents used in road transport will be digitized, reducing bureaucracy.
Yılmaz emphasized that new cooperation channels developed in sectors including energy, trade, transportation, healthcare and agriculture, based on a win-win approach, will benefit the entire region.
He said, “Our country, which ranks eighth in Kyrgyzstan's exports and sixth in its imports, is an important trade partner. I hope that commercial and economic relations between our countries will soon reach even higher levels, reflecting our brotherly bond.”
Regarding investments, Yılmaz noted that Türkiye is Kyrgyzstan's fifth-largest direct investor, with more than 2,000 Turkish companies operating in the country and approximately $2 billion in investments. Turkish contractors have implemented 95 projects in Kyrgyzstan to date, totaling around $1 billion.
“Our traders, investors, contractors - in short, all actors in the trade sector - will continue joint efforts to further strengthen economic and commercial relations between our countries, with a strong belief in a prosperous future. Today, the Türkiye-Kyrgyzstan Business Forum will be held with broad participation, bringing together the Turkish and Kyrgyz business communities. The contacts established by our businesspeople on this occasion will contribute positively to increasing bilateral trade, evaluating new investment opportunities, and boosting commercial relations,” Yılmaz added.
