Baku, 2 November 2022 (TDI): The International High-Level Conference on Digital Transformation of Information Exchange in Supply Chains Using UN Standards took place on October 31, 2022, to discuss progress.
It brought together representatives of the Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA) participating countries.
The necessity to improve the digitalization of supply chain data exchange along trade routes using diverse forms of transportation between Europe and East Asia was specifically analyzed by the participants.
The Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Olga Algayerova noted that standardized digitalization of information exchange along digital corridors in the region enhances the quality, speed, and visibility of information exchange.
She shared this while opening the Conference alongside Rashad Nabi Oghlu Nabiyev, Minister of Digital Development and Transport of Azerbaijan.
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The volume of transit goods passing through Azerbaijan has dramatically increased, according to Minister Nabiyev, as a result of the present geopolitical scenario increasing the country’s strategic value.
The Middle Corridor’s digitalization is a crucial area where tremendous advancement is possible. In addition, a new set of standards are established on the UN/CEFACT reference data models and aim to standardize the digital transformation of data.
Likewise, they aim to standardize the document exchanges in multimodal supply chains were discussed by speakers. Moreover, the Conference took notice of the beginning of a new UN Development Account project.
This project is on the application of this set of criteria and began talking about funding for pertinent programmes and pilot projects in the region.
The outcomes of this conference, which was co-hosted by the UNECE and the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport of Azerbaijan, will be used to inform the planning of the Azerbaijani Chairmanship of SPECA in 2023.
It will also be used to inform the 25th-anniversary SPECA Economic Forum along with the session of the SPECA Governing Council.
The contribution of UN standards, the function of international organizations, and the role of the private sector in this endeavor were all discussed in the conclusions and recommendations in the next stages.
In this regard, the UN SPECA member nations of Central Asia and Azerbaijan have a developing common interest in advancing trade and transportation facilitation as well as enhancing digital connectivity along trade routes between Europe and East Asia.
UN SPECA
SPECA is the United Nations Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia; Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
It aims to strengthen sub-regional cooperation in Central Asia as well as its integration into the world economy.
