ASTANA — A new regional platform has been launched in Central Asia to advance economic research and expert support. Nazarbayev University, New Uzbekistan University and American University of Central Asia announced plans to launch the Central Asian Economic Association (CAEA), aimed at strengthening links between academic research, public policy and the private sector across the region.
The association will serve as an open platform for economists working both within Central Asia and beyond, according to a Dec. 15 release. It seeks to raise the visibility of regional economic research, expand its practical impact, and foster sustained dialogue among academia, the private sector, and government.
“The formation of the Central Asian Economic Association is great news for the world of economic science. The association will facilitate research on an understudied region of great importance and will help grow the academic communities embraced by its members,” said Steven N. Durlauf, Frank P.Hixon Distinguished Service Professor and Director of the Stone Center for Research on Wealth Inequality and Mobility at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy.
International development institutions have also expressed support for the initiative.
“The association is going to fill in the gap in the region of Central Asia broadly understood. ADB shares the vision of the association as an inclusive, open and highly professional partnership, well integrated into the global, regional and national multidisciplinary networks of researchers and experts maintaining the state-of-the-art research and publication standards,” said Lyaziza Sabyrova, the head of the Regional Cooperation and Integration Department of the Central and West Asia Department (CWRD), the Asian Development Bank.
CAEA plans to organize conferences, seminars, and workshops, while also developing partnerships with international scholars and institutions. The association’s secretariat will operate on a rotating basis among member universities, starting with Nazarbayev University.
The association reflects a growing demand across the region for independent economic expertise and a stronger role for academic research in shaping effective public policy and long-term development solutions for Central Asia.
