Iran calls for international financing to increase LLDCs' connectivity

The ministerial transport conference of Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) which is underway in Turkmenistan (August 15-16) has gathered delegations from about 40 states as well as over 30 international organizations to initiate effective measures for realizing development goals of landlocked countries in the region.

According to MRUD News, in his speech at the conference, Iran's Minister of Roads and Urban Development, Rostam Ghasemi, pointed to the economic diplomacy of the Islamic Republic of Iran based on deepening relations with developing and neighboring countries and called increased connectivity as a top priority of Iran's transport policy. This is due to the particular geopolitical location of Iran amid different regional and international transport corridors including the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC). 

He added that the Islamic Republic of Iran's approach to international and regional connectivity is an interactive and collaborative approach that avoids competition. This approach is consistent with the approach of the Vienna Programme of Action for Land-Locked Developing Countries for the Decade 2014-2024. Eight out of 32 landlocked countries in the world have bilateral and multilateral transit interactions with the Islamic Republic of Iran. By now, Iran has undertaken part of the commitment of the international community to reduce the vulnerability of landlocked countries and has helped them to reduce the cost of trade by providing the landlocked countries of the region with access to the high seas.

As per the theme of the conference, Financing for Better Connectivity, Iran's transport minister pointed to the implementation of different transport projects in Iran with domestic financing and highlighted the significance of international financing of important projects including the railway connection of Chabahar to Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif in Afghanistan, connection of Mazar-e-Sharif to Pishawar in Pakistan, the reconstruction of the Quetta railway (in Pakistan) to Zahedan (in Iran), the construction of the missing railway line in Kyrgyzstan to connect the railway to Bandar Abbas through Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, as well as equipping the rail fleets of transit countries.

The main objectives of the ministerial conference are to review the progress made by landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) in the field of sustainable transport and related SDGs, to determine the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and other challenges in this context.

The conference is organized on the initiative of Turkmenistan under the auspices of the United Nations.

MG