A conference was held Nov. 1-2 in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, between Turkmenistan leaders and the World Bank Group to discuss economic development in the country.

The bank offered global expertise to Turkmenistan so officials can make informed decisions about putting forth policy to stimulate growth and competitiveness in the global market.

“The World Bank Group teams worked hard to ensure that Turkmen partners benefit from the extensive global experience in the areas of competitiveness and economic growth, as these topics are important for the Turkmenistan development agenda. We hope that the ideas discussed will help Turkmenistan diversify the economy away from hydrocarbons with increasing participation of the private sector. That will be necessary if Turkmenistan is to achieve higher living standards, ensure employment opportunities for a rapidly growing population and become more economically integrated with the rest of the world," Saroj Kumar Jha, World Bank regional director of central Asia, said.