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Rule of law needed to boost investments in Central Asia
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, at its annual meeting in Tashkent, is unveiling an overview of how to overcome the challenges to improving a business climate undermined by the weakness of the courts and legal systems in Central Asia.
The Spring issue of Law in Transition, the legal journal of the EBRD, released in Tashkent today, focuses on the five countries of Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan).
"I think that generally, over the past decade, the countries of Central Asia have managed to develop basic legal rules to support private investment," EBRD President Jean Lemierre says in an interview published in the journal. "However, it is still a big challenge to make legislation work in practice. These countries need to develop better enforcement mechanisms, strengthen institutions and raise awareness of the new legal regimes."
The Bank's yearly survey of legal perceptions has confirmed the existence of a systemic gap in Central Asia between the law as it stands on the books and as it is applied in practice - with the weakness of the region's legal systems emerging as one of the most important constraints on the business climate.
EBRD legal reform projects in Central Asia have included work in secured transactions (Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan), bankruptcy (Kyrgyz Republic, Uzbekistan), telecommunications (Kazakhstan, Tajikistan), leasing (Uzbekistan), arbitration (Kyrgyz Republic) and taxation (Turkmenistan).
New projects include the establishment of a regional telecommunications regulatory programme for Central Asia.
In a series of articles written by EBRD staff and by external authors, Law in Transition proposes a detailed analysis of the state of legal transition in the region, examining different areas such as pledge laws, bankruptcy and concessions legislation.
Law in Transition, which is published twice a year, is targeted primarily at those who make or influence legal policy in the region and is a key tool of the Bank's legal reform policy dialogue. The Spring 2003 issue is published with the financial support of the Government of the Japan.
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