Wednesday, Nov. 9 2022 CAPRC Q4 Business Meeting
EVERGREEN RESTAURANT 21411 S. Wentworth Ave. In Chicago’s Chinatown
11:15 Annual Commitee Reports
12:40 Cyber Security Seminar
November 2022
Turkiye and Central Asia by EngmJ-üvesin
Central Asia has an important place in Turkish foreign policy, not least because of its strategic and economic potential, but also due to the cultural, linguistic and kinship bonds which unites us. Many Turks like to trace their lineage back to Central Asia, taking pride in these ties steeped in history, tradition and folklore. The region is where Turkish identity is rooted and flourished.
An endemic trait of Turkey, dictated by geography and the currents of history is that, it is the eastern-most country of Europe and western-most country of Asia. Turkey’s integration with western economic and political systems does not mean it detaches itself from its roots in the East. These are complementary attributes. Straddling two continents, ideally positions Turkey to harness the confluence of immense economic and business potential. Today, I will touch upon Central Asia’s economic prospects in the Asian Century and how its strengths and proximity to this emerging center of gravity effects it in general. I will then explain Turkey’s approach to the region within the context of its “Asia Anew Initiative” and with a focus on the “Middle Corridor”.
The 21st century is frequently characterized as the “Asian century”. An era in which Asia is reaching economic predominance once again. Asian economies are on track to become larger than the rest of the world combined in purchasing power parity terms. By 2030, it is expected that the world’s 10 biggest economies will largely be made up of current emerging markets. By 2040 Asia is expected to reach 50 percent of global GDP. And by 2050, the Asian Development Bank estimates, 3 billion Asians could have living standards similar to those of contemporary Europe, and Asia could account for over half of global output. Thanks to persisting demographic, economic and political trends, the center of gravity is shifting eastward. Asia’s growing middle class, rising consumption levels, strides in technology and urban infrastructure, higher levels of intra-regional trade and supply chain networks, regional cooperation mechanisms and China’s expanding geopolitical influence are some of these trends driving this change. As such, Asia is destined to shape the next phase of globalization. In their 30 years of independence, Central Asian Republics have achieved substantial progress in many areas, particularly solidifying their sovereignty, institutionalizing their state structures and improving their level of integration with the world. In the last 3 decades, these countries have shown notable development potential. Many Central Asian Republics have embarked on market-oriented economic reforms to boost economic performance and private sector competitiveness. In the first decade of the 21st century, they recorded significant growth rates, some of the fastest in the world. This owed in no small part to their high-priced natural resource yield of oil, natural gas, cotton and gold. These resources have been the driving force that brought much needed capital into then, small, land-locked economies.
However, Central Asia’s land-locked geography does not take away from its geostrategic importance. It never has. Today, as it has been for centuries, it connects the East and the West, providing a route for trade, following the beaten track of the ancient Silk Road, which is now once again becoming the conduit of goods and riches. Furthermore, the region is also an exporter and transit route for energy resources, multiplying its strategic significance. One would be remiss if one did not include the Caucasus within this strategically important geography, as it is one of Central Asia’a gateways to Europe and it also shares the natural resources of the Caspian basin.
In the Post-Cold War era, Central Asian Republics, including Azerbaijan, developed political and economic relations with the West and some of them also joined European cooperation mechanisms. Investments from the European Union constitute 40 percent of the region’s total foreign direct investment.
In the context of the Asian Century, as new opportunities surface, Central Asian countries increasingly look towards the East. Likewise, Asian states are equally turning to Central Asia in their search for energy resources and new markets. This reciprocal dynamic engenders closer ties. Central Asia constitutes a transit route for long-haul connectivity projects, in the form of new Silk Road initiatives. The region hosts several routes of the “Belt and Road Initiative”.
For the rising powers and emerging economies of East, South and West Asia, Central Asia represents an obvious hinterland to engage, as they reach out to new markets. As a result, a natural propensity is taking shape among sub-regions of Asia, which sees them develop intra-regional connections. Central Asian states are increasingly involved in this trend. The region is set to benefit from the interests of both the East and the West in the form of investment in industrial capacity building, mainly in the hydrocarbon sector and large infrastructure projects.
It should always be kept in mind that this is an era of transformation, and by its very nature, the highly dynamic developments in the continent and diverging interests of rising economic powers may bring conflicts to the fore which may affect progress in the trends I mentioned above.
Furthermore, unforeseen challenges may continue to surface. The Covid-19 pandemic’s devastating effects to the global and national economies may take years to recover from. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan together faced an estimated contraction of 1.7 percent in 2020. According to the World Bank, in Central Asia, growth in 2021 is forecasted to be slower than the global average for Emerging Markets and Developing Economies and just below the average for the EMDEs in the Europe and Central Asia region. However, among the assessed Central Asian countries, there is a great range in conditions.
Where does Turkey stand in this era? Against this backdrop, Turkey announced its “Asia Anew Initiative” in 2019. In a nutshell, this initiative intends to streamline Turkey’s relations with the Asian countries with a comprehensive and holistic perspective. We aim to re-connect with Asia with stronger bonds. We want to explore the new opportunities presented by new areas of cooperation on the basis of mutual benefit, taking into account the particular needs and differences of the regions, sub-regions and countries in the continent. Consequently, our outlook towards Central Asia is an integral part and parcel of our policies towards the wider continent. This is not to say we are starting from scratch.
Turkey is the first country which recognized Central Asian Republics. Since 1991, our desire for a stable, independent and prosperous Central Asia has guided our policies towards the region with a view to support building free market economies and functioning democracies. Given our common historical, linguistic and cultural ties, we have sought to increase engagement with this region on a broad range of issues. The High Level Strategic Cooperation Councils with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and recently with Uzbekistan provide a useful platform to deepen our relations. We also have also a similar mechanism with Tajikistan.
Turkey’s economic relations with the Central Asian Republics have developed rapidly, and significant progress has been achieved in the fields of trade, transportation and communications. The Turkish Cooperation and Development Agency (TIKA) was established in order to provide development assistance to these countries and has been operating successfully in close cooperation with the local authorities. Around 4 thousand Turkish companies are operating in the region. Turkey’s trade volume with the countries of the region however does not live up to its potential. It was about 8 billion USD in 2020.
Turkish investments are concentrated in the construction sector throughout the region. Turkish contractors have completed projects worth billions of dollars in the past three decades. The region is also significant for Turkey’s goal of becoming an energy hub. To that effect, a growing amount of Kazakh oil is expected to be pumped through the Baku- Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline in the near future. Similarly, Ankara expects Turkmen gas to be connected to the Southern Gas Corridor through the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP), the construction of which has recently been completed. Institutionalization of Turkey’s ties with Central Asian states in the past decade has established a basis for stronger diplomatic and economic relations for the future. The Turkic Council is an important platform in this respect. Turkey will continue to focus on enhanced regional and global connectivity and energy projects, and sustainability of supply chain networks.
In this regard, Turkey has developed the “Middle Corridor Initiative”. The project is one of the most important components of the efforts to revive the ancient Silk Road. Beginning in Turkey, it passes by rail and road respectively through Georgia, Azerbaijan and the Caspian Sea, and crossing the Caspian Transit Corridor, reaches China by following Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan-Kyrgyzstan or Kazakhstan route. On this route, ports of Alat (in Azerbaijan), Kuryk (in Kazakhstan) and Turkmenbashi (in Turkmenistan) are the main points of multimodal transport.
The Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) Railway which was inaugurated in 2017 constitutes an vital part of the Middle Corridor. The BTK offers a new perspective for uninterrupted trade between China and Europe and has an initial capacity of 1 million passengers and 6.5 million tons of cargo, which is foreseen to be increased to 3 million passengers and 17 million tons of cargo per year by 2034.
There are other major infrastructure projects connecting Europe with Asia. The “Marmaray” undersea railway, Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge over the Bosphorus and the Eurasia Tunnel, all connecting Asia and Europe were respectively completed in 2013 and 2016. Further projects are in the works to enhance regional interconnectivity and supply chain networks. These are the Three-Level Tube Tunnel Project in istanbul, (^anakkale Strait Bridge project, to name a few.
The annual cargo volume from China to Europe is 10 million containers. 96% of these containers are transported via sea route, the Southern Corridor. The remainder is carried by the Trans-Siberian Railway, also called the Northern Corridor. The Middle Corridor offers a faster and more economically viable alternative to both of these routes. It is 2.000 km shorter than the Northern Corridor. The Southern Corridor takes 45 to 62 days to traverse. Once the high-speed rail lines interconnected with the Baku-
Tbilisi-Kars railway is fully operational, travel time between China and EU countries will be reduced to 12-15 days. Furthermore, the Middle Corridor offers viable options for the cargo traffic in Asia so that the loads can reach Middle East, North Africa and the Mediterranean region by utilizing port connections in Turkey.
If the Middle Corridor is used effectively, important economic opportunities will arise for the Central Asian countries to benefit from trade between China and Europe, estimated to be worth 600 billion US Dollars annually. In particular, establishment of logistical centers and free trade zones at the ports of Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan will facilitate the development and deepening of Trans-Caspian cooperation.
In addition to the “Caravansarai Project” which provides for cooperation between customs authorities in the region within the framework of the Middle Corridor, a “Common Cooperation Protocol” was signed by the Ministers of Transport of the members of the Turkic Council. A Coordination Council was launched at the level of Deputy Ministers to provide practical solutions for problems that may arise between these countries in the field of transportation. A Memorandum of Understanding was also signed for the purpose of establishing a Sister-Port Relationship between the ports of Baku, Aktau and Samsun. The Middle Corridor initiative, envisaging the revival of the ancient Silk Road, creates a synergy with China’s Belt and Road Initiative. In this framework, Turkey supports the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) on the basis of its goal of becoming a regional transport and logistics hub. As I just stated, this synergy will magnify opportunities in Central Asia, through enhanced cooperation and the dividends it entails for all involved.
A “Memorandum of Understanding on Aligning the Belt and Road Initiative and the Middle Corridor Initiative” was signed between Turkey and China in 2015. In the November 2019 framework of the-BRI, the first freight train from China’s Xi’an city to Istanbul completed its journey in 12 days. It went onwards to Prague and reached its final destination, having traversed 11.500 km. in 18 days. The train traveled on the Middle Corridor and Turkey’s transport infrastructure, including Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway and the Marmaray undersea tunnel. In December 2020, the first train from Turkey to China via Middle Corridor completed its journey in 13 days. The route is planned to carry 200 blocks of trains in 2021.
By-EngmJ-üvesin
Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2022 CAPRC Q3 NETWORKING/BOARD MEETING
EVERGREEN RESTAURANT 21411 S. Wentworth Ave. In Chicago’s Chinatown
Friday, October 7 16th Annual Silk Road Conference
Illinois Institute of Technology’s Kent College of Law Auditorium
An informative day sharpening your management skills focusing on international business, trade, and investments.
08:45 Ribbon-cutting ceremony
09:00 OPENING REMARKS-
Professor Harry Lepinske, CAPRC Chairman and retiree,
Purdue University, NW, NIU
OFFICIAL WELCOME
Professor Paul Prabhaker, Vice president Emeritus,
Northern Illinois University and CAPRC vice chairman
OFFICIAL WELCOME TO THE ILLINOIS BUSINESS COMMUNITY
Gary Camarano, Economic Development Director & Enterprise Zone
Administrator Whiteside County, Illinois
09:15 CENTRAL ASIA IS OPEN AND LOOKING FOR PARTNERS (ZOOM)
Tanner Johnson, Policy Team Lead Office of Russia, Ukraine, and Eurasia
International Trade Office U.S. Department of Commerce
Washington, D.C.
09:45 CENTRAL ASIAN MARKETS: AN OVERVIEW OF FOUR COUNTRIES
Elena V.Son, Executive Director
The American-Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce (AUCC)
The US-Kyrgyzstan Business Council (USKGZBC)
The US-Tajikistan Business Council (USTJBC)
The US- AFGANISTAN BUSINESS INITIATIVE (USAB
10:30 UNDERSTANDING CENTRAL ASIAN MARKETING
Professor Colleen Hickman
11:00 SOCIOCULTURL ASPECTS
Prof. Lepinske
11:30 UNDERSTANDING LEGAL ASPECTS (TBA)
Mukhammadli Makhmudov, Managing Partner Legal Max,
Almaty, Kazakhstan
AFTERNOON AGENDA
13:30 LOGISTICS CHALLENGES-Panel Discussion
MODERATOR: Kasi Paturi, president, Pan Asian American Business Council
PANELISTS:
Captain Shahid Naseer, president and CEO, HAARS International Inc.
Larry Bajmakovich, Midwest Sales Manager, BDG International, Inc.
14:15 INTERNATIONAL TRADE PROJECT FINANCE
Tools available to explore export sales opportunities
Joobin Mansourian, Managing Director SONIA TECH USA, Inc.
15:15 ISLAMIC BANKING
Prof. Dr. Ozgur Arslan-Ayaydin
Clinical Professor of Finance University of Illinois
15:45 OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES WITH OILSEEDS IN CENTRAL ASIA
David Headley, Chairman CAPRC’s Agriculture Committee
A timely report about Mr. Headley’s project in Central Asia
16:00 CONCLUDING REMARKS
Alex Mathews, chief Operating Officer, Biomass Energy Systems Inc.
Member, CAPRC’s Energy Committee
Friday, September 9 CAPRC Q3 Business Meeting
Northern Illinois University
Naperville, Illinois Campus
Tuesday, June 21, 2022 WORLD EXPERTS TO DISCUSS CORPORATE ESG
A timely seminar, focused on reporting disclosure of environmental, social, and corporate government data (ESG) and designed for corporate managers and investors, was presented by the Central Asian Productivity Research Center on Tuesday, June 21, 2022, at Northern Illinois University, 1120 Diehl Rd (one mile west of Naperville Rd) Naperville, Illinois. Registration at 0930 AM, seminar from 10 to 1130.
Moderator was Professor Harry Lepinske, CAPRC chairman, and retired Professor of International Business, from Purdue University NW, with teaching experience at Illinois Institute of Technology and Global Programs, College of Business, Northern Illinois University.
Focused on “The Thematic Content of ESG Reports: A Topic Modeling Approach” , Professor James Thewissen, professor of corporate finance at the Universite’ Catholique de Louvain, Belgium’, who serves as an expert at the European Commission for Horizon 2020/Europe and the National Bank of Belgium. He also develops policy recommendations for the Financial Innovation Standing Committee at the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) . He is prominent in the field of international finance, econometric modeling learning methods to optimize the reporting of financial information for FinTech companies and leading corporations. He is also prominent with articles in leading financial, accounting, and banking journals. Professor Thewissen is teaching a summer program at the University of Illinois-Chicago
He focused on the applying a novel topic modeling method to map the content of firm ESG reports and analyze its informational value to investors and related pragmatic information.
Following Dr. Thewissen was Dr. Ozgur Arslan-Ayaydin, Ph.D, ad award-winning professor of finance at the University of Illinois-Chicago. Her research interests are corporate finance and corporate governance and some of her most outstanding reports can be found in the world’s leading journals. She also is vice-treasurer of the Amsterdam-based Center for Energy and Value Issues (CEVI, and chairman of the CAPRC’s energy committee. She has co-edited three books on energy finance .Dr. Arslan-Ayaydin also acts as external evaluator and rapporteur to research projects submitted to the European Commission, which has awarded the Jean Monnet Scholarship to support Dr. Arslan-Ayaydin’s doctorate studies at he University of York, UK.
She focused on the “S” of ESG” and the important factor in investor’s, practitioners and policy-makers’ decision-making process. Of the components of ESG, “S” is the important “social aspect’, which has been gaining prominence during the past five years, and especially after the beginning of the Russo-Ukraine War. She also will discuss how a the recent events affect the financial markets and key macroeconomic indicators in Europe, Middle East and Central Asia
Friday June 10, 2022
CAPRC Q2 BOARD MEETING
CAPRC Webinar, March 22, 2022
ENTRREPRENEURSHIP & SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
OBJECTIVE: This webinar will explain core concepts of Entrepreneurship and Business Ownership with the objective of promoting the desire among participants to become business-owners themselves. The different steps involved in becoming entrepreneurs will be explained and discussed. Part of session will discuss strategies for developing small businesses.
WEBINAR LEADER:
Prof. Jamaluddin Husain, PhD
President, Entrepreneurship & Development Foundation – USA
Professor Emeritus of Entrepreneurship, Purdue University
For more information [email protected]
Monday March 21, 2022 Your Business and the Russian-Ukraine War
A discussion focusing on “Your Business and the Russian-Ukraine War” will highlight the first quarter meeting of the Central Asian Productivity Research Center scheduled at 11:15 on Monday, March 21, at Wolf’s Head Inn, located in the shopping center located at Joliet and Wolf Roads. The event is sponsored by the CAPRC energy and economic development committees.
Chairing the meeting is Professor Harry Lepinske, CAPRC chairman, who entering the former Soviet Union market in January 1978 and was in Moscow when the USSR collapsed in December 1991 His last visit to Moscow was January 1994.
Moderating this event is James Toscas, former executive director and CEO for the American Nuclear Society, who has had experiences with dealing with Russia (i.e USSR)
To register, send business card information to: [email protected]
Registration fee is only $25, including lunch ($35 at the door Mail checks to
CAPRC
5220 Ellington Ave.
Western Springs, IL 60558 no later than March 18.
Monday, March 21, 2022 CAPRC Q1 NETWORKING/BOARD MEETING
Wolf’s Head Inn 939 Joliet Rd., Indian Head Park, IL
EASY ON-EASY OFF
Southbound Tri-state: Joliet Exit
North bound Tri-state: Wolf Rd Exit
PROPOSED AGENDA
1100: Registration
1115: OPENING REMARKS-Lepinske
Minutes-Melka
COMMITTEE REPORTS
MEMBER RELATIONS-Krzyston
AGRICULTURE-Headley
CENTRAL ASIA WATER CRISIS-Herche
EDUCATION AND TRAINING-Prabhaker/Preston
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
ENERGY-Arslan-Ayaydin
ENTREPRENEURSHIP-
FINANCE AND ECONOMICS-
GLOBAL LOGISTICS SUPPLY CHAIN COMMITTEE
HEMINGWAY PROJECT-XMemmedova
LEGAL
MARKETING
PRODUCTIVITY: Paturi/Melka
QUALITY MANAGEMENT-Kalaras
SILK ROAD CONFERENCE-Lepinske
REGIONAL COORDIATOR REPORTS
March 15-May 17 MANAGEMENT TRAINING SCHEDULE (On-Line)
NAXCIVAN STATE UNIVERSITY and
CAPRC BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL INSTITUTE
Weekly Tuesday Agenda
Mar 15: Introduction to Business
Mar 22: Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development
Mar 29: Leadership and Organizational Management
Apr 5: Productivity
Apr 12: Quality Management
Apr 19: Introduction to Marketing
Apr 26: Introduction to Finance
May 3: Introduction to Economic Development
May 10: Strategic Planning
May 17: Productivity and Employee Substance Abuse
May 24: Open Discussions