The Republic of Turkey organized the 14th ECO Summit virtually on March 4, 2021 under the chairmanship of H.E. Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the honourable President of the Republic of Turkey. The event, convened under the theme of ‘Regional Economic Cooperation in the aftermath of COVID-19, was inaugurated by H.E. Mr. Imran Khan, the honourable Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. All the ten ECO Heads of States and the ECO Secretary General, as well as the ECO Observers, including the President of Turkish Cypriot State, Secretaries General of the Turkic Council and International Energy Charter were present in the Summit.
Economic Cooperation Organization Regional Coordination Centre for Food Security (ECO-RCC) has organized a virtual introductory training on “Project Cycle Management (PCM)” in cooperation with Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Subregional Office for Central Asia (FAOSEC) between 16-17 March 2021.
A joint virtual meeting was held amongst the Secretaries General of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), International Road Transport Union (IRU), the Permanent Secretariat of the Intergovernmental Commission TRACECA (PS IGC TRACECA), the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) and the Cooperation Council of Turkic-Speaking States (Turkic Council). The event, held on March 15, 2021, was aimed at elaborating the impact of COVID-19 as well as figuring out the possible ways forward to minimize the bearings of the pandemic on the road cargo transportation.
1st Joint Meeting by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey on activation of Technical Management Boards of ECO-RISCAM was virtually held on March 10, 2021. The 1st Joint Meeting by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey for discussions and decision concerning the activation of Technical Management Boards of ECO-RISCAM virtually hosted by Institute of Standards and Industrial Research of Iran (ISIRI), was attended by the Representatives of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Republic of Turkey, ECO Secretariat and ECO-RISCAM. Dr. Alireza Khakifirouz, President of Iranian National Center of Accreditation chaired the meeting.
A 3rd Expert Group Meeting on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) was virtually organized and hosted by the Disaster &Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD), the Ministry of Interior of theRepublic of Turkey, on March 9-10, 2021. The delegates from ECO Member States,ECO Secretariat as well as regional and international organizations participated in the meeting.
The ECO Secretary General, H.E. Dr. Hadi Soleimanpour participated in the First Symposium of the Rectors of ECO Member States Universities held virtually on 4 March, 2021. The Symposium was organized by Allahmeh Tabataba’i University of Iran in collaboration with the ECO Specialized Agencies. The Symposium, attended by over 50 participants from the ECO Member States, recognized the significance of innovative and pragmatic approaches for enhanced regional cooperation in the field of education.
14th Tehran’s international tourism and handicrafts exhibition inaugurated on Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at Tehran Permanent International Fairgrounds.
The ECO Secretary General, H.E. Dr. Hadi Soleimanpour attended the virtually organized launching ceremony of the International Year of Peace and Trust on January 29, 2021. The event was scheduled in line with the UN Resolution No. 73/338 adopted on September 12, 2019.
The ECO Secretary General, H.E. Dr. Hadi Soleimanpour held a videoconference with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, H.E. Mr. Rashid Meredov. The online interaction that took place between the two dignitaries on January 27, 2021 covered several issues of regional importance, including the amplification of collaborative activities from the ECO’s forum to push further the process of sustainable economic growth and development in the region.
