Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Nov. 4
By Huseyn Hasanov – Trend:
Turkmenistan’s economy has grown considerably throughout many years, turning it into an upper middle income country, Cyril Muller, World Bank vice president for Europe and Central Asia, said in a letter to President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.
Muller in his letter expressed commitment of the WB Group to supporting Turkmenistan in becoming a high income country with a modern and diversified economy.
In Muller’s view, the policy of permanent neutrality carried out by Turkmenistan is a valuable and guiding principle for achieving social and economic growth, as well as improving well-being of the country’s citizens.
Turkmenistan joined the WB Group in September 1992. In October 2016, the Turkmen Finance Ministry and the WB signed an agreement on paid consulting services in the financial sector and macroeconomics.
Turkmenistan's GDP growth in the next three years (2016-2018) is forecast at 5 percent, according to the WB June 2016 Global Economic Prospects.
Turkmenistan is one of the key players in the energy market of the Caspian region. The country produces around 70-80 billion cubic meters of gas per year.
Ashgabat pursues the policy of economic diversification. The country devalued its national currency, manat, in January 2015, reduced the investment spending and subsidies and strengthened the regulation and supervision over the banking sector.