Key projects of Turkmenistan in the field of import substitution and export development have been successfully implemented. In 2020, despite the situation with the coronavirus in the world, the supply of goods in many categories continued to grow. This clearly demonstrated that the country has reached a significant milestone in the implementation of its export strategy.
An important step towards increasing the manufacture of products focused on the foreign market was made in May 2015. Then President Berdimuhamedov approved state programs to increase export and import substitution in the country. These documents were provided for the implementation of 114 promising projects.
Around the same period, the government instructed state-owned banks to issue preferential loans to entrepreneurs. First of all, support was provided to farmers and producers of import-substituting goods.
Thanks to the financial assistance of the state, dozens of large enterprises were created. Today, they successfully compete with foreign producers of consumer products not only on the territory of Turkmenistan, but also in foreign countries.
You can clearly see the success of the export development and import substitution strategy in any Turkmen store. For their most part, domestic products make up more than 70% of the assortment.
On the shelves of domestic stores, it is increasingly rare one can find plastic products made abroad. Toys are mainly imported, but soon they will be produced in large quantities at a local factory. The project of the new profile enterprise has already been approved at the government level.
The growth rate of the market for finished plastic products is evidenced by an increase in the volume of their exports. For accuracy, we will indicate the specific figures given by the State Statistics Committee of Turkmenistan.
The volume of plastic products exported by Turkmenistan for packaging or transportation of goods in 2020 increased by 485.2% compared to 2019.From 671.5 tons, it reached 3 thousand 927.7 tons.
If we go back to 2015, when only export development and import substitution programs had just been adopted at the state level, then only one and a half tons of this category goods were sent abroad from the country.
The export of Turkmen pipes, tubes and hoses made of polymer plastics has considerably increased.From 2019 to 2020, the growth amounted 104.4%.In 2015, the supply of these products was so insignificant that in general statistical reports they were indicated as 0.0.
This means that the goods were exported, but in a very limited volume.Last year, Turkmenistan sold 14,653.7 tons of appropriate products abroad.
A notable increase in the volume of exports of plastic goods occurred in 2018.At that moment, the largest complex for the production of polymer products in Central Asia was put into operation in the Balkan region of Turkmenistan.
It is used to make various types of environmentally friendly plastic products, which are in high demand all over the world.
Of course, this is a completely new production for Turkmenistan, and it is difficult to assess the huge export growth objectively. Do these figures really indicate that a new milestone has been reached in the implementation of a long-term export strategy, or is this a temporary effect of the commissioning a new complex?
This question can be answered by the example of another, more traditional export product for Turkmenistan tomatoes. In 2015, when the state programs to increase exports had just been adopted, the country exported 1,451.7 tons of tomatoes. In 2020, this volume increased to 37,750.1 tons. The growth composed just fantastic 2,501.6%.
Such huge growth rates in the export of a traditional product are not just a coincidence or luck. This is an indicator of the achievement of the stated objective. A big and ambitious goal.
The government purposefully supported private agricultural producers, allocating preferential loans for the construction of greenhouses. In every region of the country, large greenhouse complexes are functioning now, where not only tomatoes are grown, but also dozens of other types of vitamin products.
Thanks to the accelerated development of this sphere of agriculture, entrepreneurs were able to experiment to grow more exotic types of fruits and vegetables in their greenhouses. For example, several large agricultural producers in Turkmenistan have already been supplying large quantities of bananas to domestic markets.
Today, the Turkmen business produces almost all categories of consumer goods. Entrepreneurs successfully compete with foreign manufacturers and quickly respond to market changes.
In the shortest possible time after the spread of the coronavirus in the world, dozens of domestic manufacturers launched the production of antiseptic and decontaminating agents. Previously, there were only a few types of such goods in the country. The increase in demand has led to an instant increase in supply, reflecting the flexibility of the Turkmen private sector.
Due to a well-thought-out strategy for the development of import substitution and export, Turkmenistan has now reached a new milestone. Having overcome this milestone, the country enters the next stage of industrial development. What is waiting for us at this stage?
The events of the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021 indicate that the import substitution of consumer electronics will be carried out at an accelerated pace in the country over the next few years. The first batches of televisions, tablets and computers from Turkmen state-private enterprises are already entering the market.
We have witnessed the birth of the domestic electronics industry. And in the next few years, we will observe its prosperity.