Elvira Kadyrova
There is the enormous but still unquantified potential of partnership between Turkmenistan and Qatar. The visit of President Serdar Berdimuhamedov to Qatar, 19-20 March 2023, has triggered the process of quantifying and simultaneously unlocking this potential.
The highlight of the visit is the opening of the Turkmen embassy in Doha. Equally important is the meeting of the president of Turkmenistan with the members of the Qatar Chamber (QC) and the Qatar Businessmen Association (QBA).
Including the outcome of this visit, there are 24 bilateral documents constituting the base for partnership in different areas. Both sides are cognizant of the fact that it is just the start of a very long and exciting journey toward a shared future.
As the responsible members of the comity of nations both Turkmenistan and Qatar have their own vision of the future with remarkable similarities to each other.
The Qatar National Vision 2030 is the roadmap driving the development and growth in the peninsula. Let’s quickly look at some of its aspects.
The QNV 2030 (Qatar National Vision 2030), among other things, aims to create a balance between an oil-based and a knowledge-based economy, helping diversify the country’s economy and guaranteeing a stable and sustainable business environment.
The speed of implementation is a prominent part of QNV 2030 because there is the declared aim that there should be the reasonable and sustained rates of economic growth that secure a high standard of living for this generation and for future generations. — This has actually been achieved.
There is also the desire to establish open and flexible economic structures capable of competing in a changing world.
This is in line with how Turkmenistan is systematically steering its economy in the same direction. The determination is to improve the standard of living for not only the future generations but also the current generations.
The colossal hydrocarbon reserves are the common base for development for both Turkmenistan and Qatar.
The QNV 2030 looks at optimum exploitation of hydrocarbon resources, establishing a balance between reserves and production, and between economic diversification and the degree of depletion. It states among the objectives: a vigorous oil and gas sector that generates advanced technological innovations and contributes to the development of human resources and economic capacities throughout Qatar; a fully developed gas industry that provides a major source of clean energy for Qatar and for the world; and the long term maintenance of strategic reserves of oil and gas to meet the needs of national security and sustainable development.
These are also the objectives that define the hydrocarbon development initiatives of Turkmenistan.
The economic diversification is a prime objective for both Turkmenistan and Qatar.
The QNV 2030 says that a diversified economy that gradually reduces its dependence on hydrocarbon industries, and enhances the role of the private sector and maintains its competitiveness through:
- Expansion of industries and services with competitive advantages derived from hydrocarbon industries.
- Design and development of economic activities in which Qatar can specialize, including the technical and human requirements of these activities.
- A knowledge-based economy characterized by innovation; entrepreneurship; excellence in education; a world-class infrastructural backbone; the efficient delivery of public services; and transparent and accountable government.
Qatar National Vision 2030
https://www.psa.gov.qa/en/qnv1/Documents/QNV2030_English_v2.pdf
Another area where the visions of Turkmenistan and Qatar are perfectly in line with each other is the balance between the development needs and the protection of the environment.
According to QNV 2030, the aim is to preserve and protect the environment, including air, land, water and biological diversity, through:
- An environmentally aware population that values the preservation of the natural heritage of Qatar and its neighboring states
- An agile and comprehensive legal system that protects all elements of the environment, responding quickly to challenges as they arise
- Effective and sophisticated environmental institutions that build and strengthen public awareness about environmental protection, and encourage the use of environmentally sound technologies; these institutions will also conduct awareness-raising campaigns, employ environmental planning tools, and carry out environmental research
- A comprehensive urban development plan for Qatar that adopts a sustainable policy with regard to urban expansion and population distribution
This is almost exactly how Turkmenistan is managing the protection of its environment.
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The QNV 2030 is based on a holistic approach – everything is connected with everything else. This is also the declared policy of Turkmenistan.
During the past 15 years, Qatar has shown that it has the resilience and determination to deal successfully with a variety of multiple and unexpected challenges.
During the same period, Turkmenistan has also proven its agility and ingenuity to turn challenges into opportunities while maintaining the pace and direction of development.
With the embassy of Turkmenistan working in Qatar, it is expected that the formation of the joint business council will take place quickly and its first meeting may possibly take place together with the session of the joint commission this year.
The international forum for attracting foreign investment in the energy sector of Turkmenistan, to be held on April 26-27, 2023 in Dubai, UAE, will be another opportunity for Qatar to get further acquainted with the possibilities of partnership with Turkmenistan, not just in the hydrocarbon sector but also the related areas such as transportation and transit, connectivity, and hi tech collaboration.
The rapport that exists between the leadership of both the countries should be the catalyst for turning the immense potential for partnership between Turkmenistan and Qatar into an endless array of mutually beneficial initiatives. /// nCa, 21 March 2023