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RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHLH RUEHLN
RUEHLZ RUEHPW RUEHROV RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHAH #1282/01 3301312
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 261312Z NOV 07
FM AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9768
INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 0846
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 0720
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RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 1296
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 1942
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
RHMFIUU/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
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RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 001282 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN (SNELSIRE) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ENRG EAID PINR PREL PGOV TX
SUBJECT:  TURKMENISTAN: MINISTRY OF ECONOMY AND FINANCE MISSES BOAT 
WITH COOLNESS TO INVESTOR'S ROADMAP PROPOSAL 
 
REF: A) ASHGABAT 729 
 
 B) ASHGABAT 864 (Sullivan-Jeparov) 
 
¶1.  (U) Sensitive but unclassified.  Not for public Internet. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) SUMMARY: Despite earlier expressions of interest in a 
USAID proposal to develop an Investor's Roadmap to improve 
Turkmenistan's investment climate, the Ministry of Economy and 
Finance (MOEF) is unwilling to commit to USG technical assistance in 
this area.  Previously, MOEF experts said a heavy workload and the 
need to wait for a long-delayed EU-TACIS program to begin were 
preventing a decision on the Roadmap.  The most recent explanation 
is that the Minister won't consider USAID's proposal until the 
Ministry develops its own draft strategy for improving the 
investment climate.  Given the lack of expertise regarding 
international best practices, the Ministry may be missing an 
important opportunity regarding economic reforms since the roadmap 
exercise could provide valuable input to the existing task of 
preparing a draft strategy.  END SUMMARY. 
 
ACKNOWLEDGED NEED TO IMPROVE INVESTMENT CLIMATE 
 
¶3.  (SBU) During meetings this summer with various USG delegations 
(reftel), First Deputy Economy and Finance Minister Tuwakmamet 
Jeparov acknowledged the importance of an attractive business 
climate.  In response, USAID submitted a proposal in August to 
cooperate with the Ministry in an Investor's Roadmap exercise, and 
in mid-September submitted a sample Investor's Roadmap report from 
Kazakhstan in response to the Ministry's direct request. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) USAID has supported the Investor's Roadmap process in 
numerous countries around the world.  The Investor's Roadmap is an 
analytical methodology that spells out the step-by-step requirements 
an investor or entrepreneur must satisfy in order to become 
operational in full compliance with all laws, regulations, 
procedures, and institutional practices.  The approach can be 
applied to many different kinds of investors, including, for 
example, to focus on the steps required for: converting from 
informal to formal status for micro-enterprises; stimulating direct 
foreign investment; and improving investment to specific sectors, 
such as health care providers, non-traditional horticulture 
producers, and different regions of the country.   The approach 
proposed by USAID was specifically targeted to identify the key 
factors affecting direct foreign investment. 
 
RELUCTANCE TO COMMIT -- OR DESIRE TO FOLLOW ITS OWN PATH? 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Although interactions at the working-level have become 
somewhat more cordial, repeated phone calls to Ministry specialists 
beginning just after the proposal's submission have yielded mixed 
indications with regard to interest in the exercise.  In a November 
14 telephone inquiry from a USAID project management specialist, the 
MOEF department head familiar with the proposal stated that the 
recent IMF delegation and the need to develop new exchange rate 
policies were more pressing issues.  A follow-up phone call on 
November 20 provided no clearer answer, since key specialists 
reportedly had traveled to Brussels to participate in the bidding 
process for the upcoming EU-TACIS economic reform program.  The MOEF 
advised, however, that she had brought this issue to the attention 
of the Minister, who reportedly told her that he wouldn't consider 
the roadmap proposal until the Ministry's own specialists developed 
their own draft strategy for improving the investment climate.  Only 
after that could they determine whether the proposal would move 
forward. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) COMMENT: While the Ministry might desire to work on its 
own proposal, a key question is whether it actually has staff with 
sufficient knowledge of international best practices to prevent them 
from implementing changes that do not actually improve the 
situation.  The Investor Roadmap exercise is a tool that looks at 
existing regulations and laws and identifies - from the perspective 
 
ASHGABAT 00001282  002 OF 002 
 
 
of an investor - the changes that might help improve the investment 
climate.  As a result, it could provide valuable input to the 
pressing task of preparing a draft strategy of investment climate 
improvement.  END COMMENT. 
 
CURRAN