BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 10
By Jeila Aliyeva - Trend:
Turkmenistan continues to report strong GDP growth despite the global economic contraction, cause by COVID-19, Trend reports with reference to The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Transition Report 2020-21.
The government reported that retail trade turnover increased by 19.4 percent year-on-year in the first three quarters of 2020, says the report.
The report also notes that according to official data, COVID-19 has not been registered in the country. Despite this, Turkmenistan took preventive steps to restrict cross-border and internal movements and impose social distancing.
Large shopping centres, markets, theatres, parks and sports facilities had to briefly suspend operations from 21 July to 1 August 2020.
According to the report, in May the government established the Reserve Currency Fund which will accumulate the foreign currency earnings of all state enterprises.
In April 2020 the president instructed the government to prepare proposals for revising the state budget and expenditure and to develop short- and medium-term measures to reduce the negative impact of the global economic contraction and the virus on business activities.
“In March 2020, the president approved the Preparedness and Response Plan, which is designed to prevent the emergence of COVID-19 in Turkmenistan. The plan was developed in collaboration with the United Nations and its agencies (United Nations Development Programme, World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund). Measures in the plan have been reported to fully comply with WHO recommendations,” says the report of EBRD.
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