Center for Economic and Social Development (CESD), leading think tank in Azerbaijan, starting implementing “Sector policy convergences  in Trade and Cross-border Cooperation  in Azerbaijan  to support EU Eastern Partnership initiative” Project with support of PASOS. Project specific objectives, along with respective activities and planned outputs, are listed map the relevant policy landscape in Azerbaijan, conduct the policy gap analysis and regulatory need assessment for sector policy convergences in the trade and cross-border cooperation field (i); set priorities and promote the outcomes of analyses and assessment for effective deployment and involvement of the necessary capacity among state and civil society actors, and for effective communications with EU institutions (ii); conduct the advocacy at national level towards the proposed policy changes, including legislative and administrative reforms in line with policy recommendations, through media campaign, seminar, conference and roundtable discussions and issue press-releases, newsletters, articles, reports, policy recommendations and on-line and paper publications and dissemination among local government and civil society actors and EU institutions (iii); facilitate and assist the accession of Azerbaijan to WTO, and promote overall European integration (iv); develop staff needs analysis and training needs analysis in Azeri government, train relevant ministries/state agencies to ensure policy ownership, to improve public administration skills vital for the gradual sector policy convergences  in trade and cross-border cooperation, and to ensure the sustainability of the process (v) and others.

The Eastern Partnership (EaP) endorsed by the European Council in March 2009 aims at development of a specific Eastern dimension of ENP. EaP emphasizes several priority areas and growing cooperation, including border management programme, Southern corridor, integration of economies, improved mobility and contacts among people and business. All these make convergence of policies of EaP countries in the field of trade and cross-border cooperation with respective policies of EU very important to facilitate the implementation of EaP priorities and overall EU policy and goals in Azerbaijan and the region. Apart from the direct impact on EaP priority areas listed above, these reforms will also provide an easier and effective framework facilitating the movement of goods, services, information and people, and will therefore demonstrate positive side effects in promotion of other components of EU strategy in the region, and in socio-economic integration and development of the region countries. Timely intervention with clear policy and advocacy goals is therefore highly efficient and politically important for regional countries, including Azerbaijan, and for promotion of EaP and overall EU principles and priorities.

The Center for Economic and Social Development (CESD), therefore leads the initiative along with two foreign and seven local partner organizations to conduct research, advocacy and capacity-building on policy convergence in above identified priority sector in Azerbaijan.

This project is to be implemented within the context of the broad objective of promoting EU values, Azerbaijan’s socio-economic integration with EU, and the economic, political and social development of Azerbaijan in line with the priorities set out in the EU Eastern Partnership initiative (EaP). Specifically, the project seeks to provide (1) policy analysis, (2) advocacy and (3) capacity building in Azerbaijan towards EaP principles and priorities of better economic integration with the EU and increased mobility and contacts between people through sectoral policy convergence with EU in trade and cross-border cooperation.