It is necessary to approve the document on the long-term development of the Middle Corridor until 2040, Sapar Bektasov, Director of the Transit and Transport Logistics Development Department at the Ministry of Industry and Infrastructure Development of Kazakhstan said at the ESCAP 2023 economic forum in Baku, Trend reports. "Global transportation today accounts for 6 percent of the world economy. In recent years, the importance of transportation as a factor of national competitiveness and sustainable growth has increased dramatically. In this context, there is a need to develop plans and mechanisms to promote the growth of the share of GDP transportation in the ESCAP region," Bektasov concluded. He also noted that Central Asia has great potential for the development of transit container transportation. Moreover, he added that the throughput capacity of Kazakhstan's sea ports can be increased to 470 - 500,000 DV containers per year Meanwhile, the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) was established on March 26, 1998. The ESCAP participating States are currently Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. ESCAP provides a platform for sub-regional cooperation to realize those Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that can best be achieved through regional cooperation. Azerbaijan will chair ESCAP in 2023. Baku is hosting the ESCAP from November 20 to 24, 2023. Source: Trend News Agency