BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 29. The World Bank is prepared to support all countries along the Middle Corridor in developing the capacities of this route, Rolande Pryce, WB Regional Director for the South Caucasus, told Trend.
"One of the key findings is that by 2030, with the right investments and policy reforms, there is the potential to triple trade volumes along this corridor and halve the time. In the past, the Middle Corridor wasn't as interesting due to a seamless route through one large country to the north. However, given the current geopolitics, it has become more interesting, but work needs to be done in the areas of investments and policy reforms to make it truly viable," she said.
As she noted, the WB’s first step was to conduct the analysis, and the report published as a result focused on Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Georgia as key actors within the Middle Corridor.
"We identify specific actions needed to make travel seamless, akin to moving through one large country. The first step involves managing logistics solutions along the entire corridor. Travel should not feel disjointed, such as stopping at the Georgian border after going by rail through Azerbaijan. It should feel like a smooth journey, regardless of the means of transport, as if moving on a fast highway," she explained.
Meanwhile, the WB forecasts a substantial threefold increase in transportation volume through the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), or the so-called Middle Corridor, by 2030. In particular, the volume of cargo via the Caspian Sea is expected to reach an impressive 11 million tons. This surge signifies a remarkable 209-percent growth from the current figures.