How Turkey Can Help the Economies of the South Caucasus to Diversify
A comprehensive, forward-looking strategy for the South Caucasus that also factors in the potential of Central Asia is critical to help the South Caucasus strengthen its competitiveness, diversify its economic relations, and move beyond its traditional path dependencies. One key step would be to establish a regional cooperation framework that leverages the industrial potential of countries such as Uzbekistan by linking them more closely with EU technology and Turkey’s commercialization capacity. This would make envisaged connectivity projects meaningful and truly transformative. At the same time, smaller South Caucasus economies could benefit from targeted sectoral transformation in areas such as cultural exchanges, ecotourism, and IT, which offer opportunities for inclusive job creation.




