ASHGABAT (TCA) — Turkmenistan has begun construction on a multi-billion-dollar, cross-country highway project that the gas-rich and largely isolated Central Asian nation hopes will help generate more regional trade, RFE/RL reported.

The State News Agency of Turkmenistan reported on January 24 that the Turkmen President’s decree had ordered to start works in January 2019 and to complete the construction of the highway and all facilities in three phases until December 2023.

The four-lane highway is projected to link Turkmenistan’s capital of Ashgabat to the city of Turkmenabat near the border with Uzbekistan.

The government newspaper Neutral Turkmenistan reported on January 25 that the artery, expected to cost $2.3 billion when completed, will stretch across some 600 kilometers of desert.

It is hoped the new highway will boost regional trade by linking with another planned artery linking the capital to the port of Turkmenbashi, on the Caspian Sea coast.

The son of Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, a deputy regional governor, was on hand for a ceremony to mark the launch of construction on January 24.

Serdar Berdymukhammedov called the highway an example of Turkmenistan’s “great support to the private sector, which is developing rapidly in our country.”

The road will be constructed by a little-known private company called Turkmen Awtoban, with a loan provided by the national bank.

Turkmen state television said the road construction aims to build up cargo transit along key trade corridors leading to Europe and the Middle East.

BISHKEK (TCA) — Kyrgyzstan has adopted a 12-year state strategy for the development of public health including health systems. Tagged “Healthy person – prosperous country”, the new health strategy for 2019–2030 aims to protect health, ensure access to essential quality services, strengthen primary health care and decrease financial hardship for all people and communities, in pursuit of universal health coverage (UHC) by 2030, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported on its website on January 23.

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DUSHANBE (TCA) — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $2 million regional technical assistance grant to support the development of railways in Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) countries, ADB’s country office in Tajikistan said on January 25.

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ASTANA (TCA) — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on January 25 said it has raised 30.4688 billion tenge (around $80 million) from two new issues of local currency bonds in Kazakhstan.

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ASTANA (TCA) — The opening ceremony of Central Asia’s largest solar power plant — SES Saran — with a capacity of 100 MW was held on January 23 in the industrial center of the Karaganda region, the Saran town.

The launch of this solar power plant is an example of the practical implementation of the tasks set by the President of Kazakhstan on economization of the country’s foreign policy, attraction of best practices, knowledge, technology and investment in Kazakhstan, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said.

Implemented in a short time, the project was the result of coordinated work of central and local authorities with a group of foreign companies from Germany, the Czech and Slovak Republics, as well as the EBRD.

During the construction of the solar power plant, particular attention was paid to local context, including the involvement of local workers, products and construction materials from Saran companies. In addition, jobs have been created for local residents at the new solar power plant.

The launch of the solar power plant was another practical contribution to the implementation of the task of President Nursultan Nazarbayev to increase the share of renewable energy in the country, the transition to green technologies.

This was noted in the statements by Energy Minister Kanat Bozumbayev, German Ambassador to Kazakhstan Tilo Klinner, Akim (governor) of Karaganda region Erlan Koshanov, and Head of the International Center for Green Technology and Investment Projects Rapil Zhoshybayev.

Before the opening ceremony, the parties signed a Memorandum on the development of the SES Saran project, which enables investment of up to 500 million dollars.

The official opening ceremony was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, who held talks with the authorities of Saran, Karaganda region and the German company Goldbeck Solar. Agreements on the further involvement of economic diplomacy in the promotion of regional projects with the participation of European investors and the involvement of their technologies have been reached, the ministry said.

KABUL (TCA) — A co-founder of the Afghan Taliban who was released from detention by Pakistan last year has been appointed as the leader of the militant group’s political office in Qatar, RFE/RL’s Radio Mashaal reports.

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