The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) have joined forces to advance the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, also known as the Middle Corridor, facilitating enhanced connectivity between Asia and Europe via the South Caucasus.
The MoU was signed by Matteo Patrone, EBRD Vice President, Banking, and Erin Elizabeth McKee, Assistant Administrator in the Bureau for Europe and Eurasia at USAID, on the sidelines of the EBRD’s Annual Meeting and Business Forum held in Armenia.
Under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the two organizations, the partnership will concentrate on expanding trade, fostering green energy initiatives, investing in emerging industries, and bolstering transport and digital infrastructure across Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia.
By strengthening the Middle Corridor, the initiative aims to unlock new transformative economic prospects across the region, providing an alternative transport route to existing commercial corridors.
The MoU aims to enhance the planning, design, and construction of critical energy, transport, digital, and agricultural infrastructure in the region. Additionally, it seeks to streamline customs, tariff, and border operations, attract private capital investment into the South Caucasus economies to bolster the development of the Middle Corridor, and adhere to the highest international standards to promote economic connectivity with Europe and among South Caucasus countries.
Furthermore, the cooperation priorities include expanding investments in carbon-free energy opportunities and advancing policy and governance reforms to combat corruption while fostering increased engagement with civil society.
