Building up of Motherland’s economic power, guiding it into the rank of developed countries of the world, raising the standard of living of the people – these are key goals the President Serdar Berdimuhamedov’s policy is aimed at. The policy’s key priorities found their practical realization in the large-scale programs on comprehensive modernization and diversification of economy, import-substitution and strengthening of the country’s export potential, in the consistently realized foreign-policy strategy of neutral Turkmenistan. 

Urgent problems of socioeconomic development of the capital and velayats, implementation progress of agri-works were in the focus of the online working meeting the President of Turkmenistan convened on March 28. 

Having stressed that all works carried out in the capital are to be perfect in every respect, not the least significant is to increase the rates of construction works and modernization of roads, the head of state noted and gave the relevant assignments on increasing quality of servicing the population in the trade sphere.

Particular accent was focused on the issues of improving the land-farming culture with a glance to the soil-climate conditions of regions, well-organized conducting of the cotton-seeding campaign in the scheduled agri-technical period, optimum treating and monitoring of the fields planted to wheat, increasing production volumes and diversifying of agri-food and vegetable-cucurbitaceous produce.

Special presidential assignments were given on completing in due time of the spring tree-planting and reforestation campaign and taking sapling-care proper measures. 

The talk was also about ensuring comprehensive preparedness to the season of cocoon production, creating every necessary condition to promote implementation of contractual obligations by tenant-silkworm breeders. 

Given the importance of the complex approach to tackling the tasks ensuing from the Program of the country’s socioeconomic development in 2019-2025, the head of state has stressed that implementation of works on construction of objects of socio-cultural purpose in due time and at high level are the key tasks of the times.

The priority issues of the state’s vital activity were considered at the online session of the Cabinet of Ministers, which President Serdar Berdimuhamedov conducted on March 31.

The head of state was informed about the outcomes of the Turkmen delegation’s working visit to the town of Almaty (The Republic of Kazakhstan) to take part in the solemn session of Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of the Commonwealth of Independent States dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the CIS IPA, and in the measures and meetings timed to the event.

In Almaty, the delegation of Turkmenistan had a meeting with Chairman of Senate of the Republic of Kazakhstan. At the meeting, consideration was given to further development of the future-orientated parliamentary cooperation regarding it as an integral part of the traditionally friendly neighboring relations between the two countries.

At the session of the Government, the results were also avowed of the analysis conducted by the Ministry of Finance and Economy in association with ministries, sectoral departments, khyakimliks of veayats on denationalization and privatization of enterprises and objects. It was found advisable to privatize a number of objects via the public auctions and sell the share of the state-run entity via the stock exchange.

Information was presented on the preparedness rate to the upcoming state visit of the President of the Republic of India to our country and on the outcomes of International Forum on attracting of foreign investments into the oil/gas sector of Turkmenistan.

Consideration was also given to the April Program of Culture Measures dedicated to national holidays and remarkable events, commissioning of the objects of social-cultural purpose, as well as to transferring active-duty servicemen to the reserve from the Armed Forces, other troops and military bodies, and to well-organized conducting of the spring conscription campaign.

To successfully cope with the tasks of state programs, the proposals on allocating 10,542.22- hectare land areas to the ministries, sectoral departments, khyakimliks and their agencies and enterprises for permanent and temporary use assigned for construction and production  purposes were submitted to President Serdar Berdimuhamedov for consideration.

Given the AIC significance for upward development of the national economy, for strengthening of food security and export potential of the country, planned import-substitution of food products, the head of state has necessitated to intensify implementation of agrarian reforms, adopt effective forms of economic management, and comprehensively support business initiatives.

The President of Turkmenistan has also considered the proposal on arranging production of 50,000 tons of calcite in Koitendag etrap (Lebap velayat), and addressed a number of concrete assignments for unleashing untapped potential of the construction industry capable in corpora to provide the domestic consumers with import-substituting production of high quality.

Further improvement of social and life conditions, growth in prosperity of people in towns and villages – is a key goal of the programs and strategies to be realized. These tasks are also in tune with the projected construction in Turkmenbashy (Balkan velayat) of the five 4-story enhanced-comfort residential houses intended for the personnel of transport and communications sphere (300 families).

At the session, the head of state has approved the Turkmen side’s membership in the Joint Turkmen-Azeri Commission on transport, transit and logistics. 

On April 2, Ashgabat hosted negotiations of President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov with President of the Republic of India Ram Nath Kovind, who arrived in our country on a state visit. 

The visit of the friendly state’s leader to our country is the first one in history of our interstate relations. The top-level meeting is notable for celebrating in the current year of the two remarkable dates – 30th anniversary of establishing of Turkmen-Indian diplomatic relations and 75th jubilee of India’s independence.

A broad gamut of issues related to interest-based interstate interaction (in the trade-economic sphere in particular) was in the focus of negotiation process. Rather perspective is cooperation in the energy, industrial and transport sectors, in the high-tech sphere, agriculture, and trade.

The sides have expressed confidence that integration of their efforts in realization of the possibilities and potential available will enable to bring the bilateral trade-economic partnership at a qualitatively new level, to considerably increase reciprocal trade turnover, diversify its structure and substance.

The heads of states exchanged opinions on a number of urgent issues of the regional and global agenda representing their interests.

In this regard, the President of Turkmenistan has set forth the five strategic directions our country would be guided by in the upcoming decades.

The first is – safeguarding of peace and security. Our goal is – in the foreseeable future to establish the sustainable, indivisible, irreversible system of security and stability in Central Asia and its adjacent zones.

Second, the head of state Serdar Berdimuhamedov has declaimed development and advancement of neutrality at the world arena; third – steady increase and diversification of foreign economic ties; fourth – all-round supporting of sustainable development; and fifth – furtherance of humanization of international relations, introducing into them high standards of morals, morality and justice.

As the President of Turkmenistan said, the world-view platform of our country’s activity on world arena is the initiative proclaimed by the Hero-Arkadag late in the past year – “Dialogue – guarantee of peace”, which, it nowadays becomes obvious, acquires indeed global perception.  

In the course of negotiations, much attention was given to the situation in Afghanistan. Turkmenistan’s position in this issue is based on the unity of political, economic and humanitarian aspects of rendering assistance and support to the neighboring state.

In this context, the Turkmen side gave high assessment to India’s efforts in the Afghan issue, including the successfully conducted on November 10-11, 2021, of the “Dialogue on the regional security on Afghanistan” and the Deli Declaration adopted by results of the Dialogue.

While discussing the issues of cooperation in the energy sector, particular attention was concentrated on the issues of putting into life the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India gas pipeline project. Along with economic feasibility of the project for all its participants, construction of TAPI is assigned to considerably invest into strengthening of stability in the region, understanding and trust between participant-countries, promote economic and political rapprochement between them.

Transport sphere was also ranked among the strategic directions. The sides agreed on reciprocal promotion of formation of the sustainable Euro-Asian corridors to the Indian sea terminals via the territory of Turkmenistan, including with the use of our country’s infrastructure on the Caspian Sea. In this context, the Turkmen side set forth a proposal to organize direct negotiations between seaports of Chabahar and Turkmenbashy.

Not the least significant is also the project of Uzbekistan-Turkmenistan-Iran-Oman-Qatar transport corridor.

Among other topical vectors of partnership President Serdar Berdimuhamedov has identified interaction between the specialized national institutions of the two countries, including in the spheres of finance, renewable energy resources, information, digital and other advanced technologies. 

Clear and promising are the perspectives for partnership in the health sphere – the fact of particular importance in the light of the global coronavirus pandemic. 

Cultural-humanitarian cooperation, in education in particular, is yet another direction of priority.

The negotiation process in the enlarged format was followed by the ceremony of signing the bilateral documents.

In the presence of the two countries’ heads, the following documents have been signed: Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in managing emergency situations – between the Government of Turkmenistan and the Government  of the Republic of India; Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the sphere of youth – between the Ministry of Sports and Youth Policy of Turkmenistan and the Ministry on Youth and Sports Affairs of the Republic of India; Program of Cooperation in the sphere of culture and art for 2022-2025 – between the Government of Turkmenistan and the Government  of the Republic of India.

Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the sphere of financial information exchange related to laundering and financing of terrorism control was also signed between the Financial Monitoring Service under the Ministry of Finance and Economy of Turkmenistan and the Office of Financial Intelligence of the Republic of India.

By results of negotiations, the Joint Turkmen-Indian Statement was adopted.

On the past week, Ashgabat hosted the International Forum on attracting foreign investments into the oil/gas branch of Turkmenistan. The forum was organized by State Concerns«Türkmengaz», «Türkmennebit» and «Türkmenhimiýa”, State Corporation«Türkmengeologiýa» in the partnership with “Turkmen Forum” Business Company supported by the British “Gaffney Cline” Company.

Conducted in the traditional format and online broadcasted from the Turkmen capital to scores of countries of the world, the Forum was aimed to strengthen the dialogue on further sustainable development of the energy sector and enhancement of possibilities for attracting of foreign investments into the national FEC.  

The Forum was attended by representatives of about 100 companies from 32 states – heads and representatives of Turkmen and foreign oil/gas companies, international financial institutions, organizations and diplomatic missions accredited to Turkmenistan, as well as leading experts in the FEC sphere. 

The Forum attendees were familiarized with the achievements of Turkmenistan’s oil/gas sector, future-oriented plans of the branch development and diversification of the natural gas supplies, implementation progress of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India transnational gas pipeline construction project.

Among other subjects considered were – creation of a reliable and steady-state system to get exposure to international markets, harmonization of the FEC “green” technologies. 

In the course of Forum, direct transmission was carried out from Turkmenistan Exhibition Pavilion at the World Exhibition “EXPO-2020 (Dubai, UAE), where, simultaneously with Ashgabat, the session “Role of Turkmenistan in safeguarding of the regional energy security” was organized. At the session, the reports were delivered by leaders and chief specialists of the national oil/gas sector and foreign companies, notably – «Dragon Oil», «Fluxys», «Gaffney Cline», and Energy and Water Supply Association of Dubai (DEWA).

Concrete vectors of further interaction were outlined in the course of bilateral meetings between representatives of the national FEC and their foreign partners.

In the frames of Forum a number of documents were signed.

The MFA of Turkmenistan hosted a briefing dedicated to adoption of Turkmen Resolution “Integration of mass cycling traffic into the public transportation systems in the interests of sustainable development” by the UN General Assembly and election of Turkmenistan a member the UN Commission for International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) for the period 2022-2028.The briefing was attended by heads and representatives of diplomatic missions working in Turkmenistan, as well as representatives of media community.

As was noted, the recent political events in the country are of paramount importance from the standpoint of internal development of the state and society, as well as of the country’s international activity development. In the run-up to 2022, the UN General Assembly has adopted 17 Resolutions authored by Turkmenistan.

The within-named Resolution, which calls for comprehensive realization of the Sustainable Development Goals, advancement of the healthy life style, development of ecology-friendly types of transport and increase of the traffic security level, was co-authored by 62 states.

In this regard worth of noting is the fact that in 2022 Turkmenistan is ready to host the international conference dedicated to the role of cycling traffic in providing sustainability and ecological compatibility of urban transport systems.

Worth of noting that khyakimliks and social organization of Ashgabat set forth an initiative to conduct an ecology action dedicated to World Health Day. In the frames of action, throughout April 4-11 of the running year (8.00 a.m-18 p.m.), the urban traffic will be opened for urban buses, taxi cars and specialized transport.

The action will become yet another evidence that concern for ecological wealth is an inextricable ingredient of the socially orientated policy of President Serdar Berdimuhamedov, the cornerstone of the people’s health and happy life. 

…In the course of briefing, it was stressed that election of our country a member of UNCITRAL for the period 2022-2028 is the result of steady realization of goals and tasks enshrined in the “Program of Turkmenistan’s foreign economic activity development in 2020-2025” and “Turkmenistan’ Foreign-Trade Strategy in 2021-2030”.

The Order of the President Serdar Berdimuhamedov has sanctioned the business trip of Turkmen delegation on March 29-31, 2022, to the town of Huangshan (The Chinese People’s Republic) to take part in the third meeting of MFA Ministers of neighboring countries of Afghanistan, as well as in the work of Dialogue “Neighbor-Countries of Afghanistan + Afghanistan”.

Late in March, in pursuance of the schedule approved, the farmers of Dashoguz velayat launched the cotton-seeding campaign (a little bit later than in other velayats due to its climate conditions). 140,000-hectare land area is to be planted to cotton in the velayat to produce 275,000 tons of “white gold”. 

The well-organized field work is efficiently buttressed by modern agri-machinery and equipment, including 2,552 high-performance tractors of different brands, seeding machines, cultivators, sufficient volumes of seed material.

Proceeding to other events of the past week, worth of mentioning is the fact that the Charitable Foundation named after Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, the account of which is constantly replenished by the people not indifferent to other folks’ troubles, has assigned the means for operations of children in need of tutelage.  

Recently, in the country’s best clinics – Mother and Child Health Protection Center of Lebap velayat, Children’s Hospital of Mary velayat, and Mother and Child Health Protection Center of Ashgabat – 10 orphan and low-income families’ children were operated on. Now, they are under the care of the best specialists-medics. 

Nowadays, the medical entities carry out the pre-operation measures to prepare the children for operating of congenital heart disease and vessels. The operations will be funded via the Charitable Foundation.

In the run-up of the countrywide celebrated World Health Day, in the town of Tejen (Akhal velayat), a new pharmacy was launched in the frames of realization of the state reform-based programs aimed at advancement of towns and villages of the country, and the National Program of Turkmenistan’s socioeconomic development in 2022-2052.

Health protection of the people is proclaimed by President Serdar Berdimuhamedov a priority of the socially-orientated state policy course. In his inauguration speech, the head of state has specially pointed out: “Health of man in our country is the highest value of the society and state, and this is why much work will be done in the sphere of health protection of the population, disease prevention and eradication, advancement of health system and medical industry in tune with world standards. In the health system, the reforms will be kept going. New modern sophisticated hospitals and health recreation centers and entities will be built”.

 The new pharmacy (working in the 24/7 format) may boast of a wide gamut of national and European medicinal preparations, various medicinal and diagnostic devices and equipment. Besides, the pharmacy includes the veterinary department, inquiry service; in project is the delivery service.

On April 2, a regular (17th) online session of Mejlis of Milli Gengesh of sixth convocation was held to discuss and adopt a number of laws and normative-legal acts developed in compliance with the priorities of the state policy of President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and the program of upgrading of the country’s legislative-legal base. 

Discussion of the draft Resolution of Mejlis of Milli Gengesh “On electing Ombudsman” was among important issues of the session. In compliance with the Law “On Ombudsman”, out of 3 pretenders for the position the participants of meeting voted by secret ballot in favor of Ya. Gurbannazarov.

On the whole, the events of the past week for the umpteenth time serve as a striking confirmation that in the era of Revival of New Epoch of the Powerful state, the policy of peace, equitable and mutuality-based international cooperation pursued by President Serdar Berdimuhamedov invests in strengthening of the Motherland’s economic might, steady growth in prosperity of the people, achievement of new heights.