TRACECA chief praises Azerbaijan's role in corridor's digitalisation

The Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia (TRACECA) is developing a digitalisation roadmap with support from the World Bank, said TRACECA Secretary General Asset Assavbayev.

"Digitalisation, particularly the introduction of the electronic consignment note, significantly accelerates cargo processing, shortens delivery times, and reduces costs. This is increasingly critical as transport volumes grow and logistics chains become more complex,” Assavbayev told Report in an interview, per Caliber.Az.

He specifically highlighted the contribution of Azerbaijan Railways to the digitalisation process. “Thanks to their technical and organisational efforts, electronic data exchange has become a reality. Of course, there are still some technical issues in cooperation with certain countries, but we are confident that these will be overcome," Assavbayev said.

Asavbayev said that the TRACECA Digital Concept through 2030 has already been adopted, and a dedicated interstate working group on digital transformation has been established. This group is coordinating efforts to implement electronic documents, facilitate digital data exchange, and harmonize IT systems across member states.

“One of the major milestones has been the successful launch of electronic transport data exchange (in CIM/SMGS format) between the railways of Azerbaijan and Georgia, and between Georgia and Türkiye. Similar work is now underway involving Kazakhstan, Türkiye, Ukraine, and Moldova, which has also expressed interest in joining the project,” he said.

The secretary general added that a draft multilateral agreement on digitalisation has been prepared. Once finalised, it will serve as a legal framework for cross-border electronic cooperation.

“The text is currently under review, with member states submitting comments and suggestions. Its goal is to eliminate barriers stemming from legal discrepancies and varying levels of digital maturity. As part of the concept, an Implementation Plan for electronic permits for road transport has also been approved — another significant step toward simplifying logistics,” Assavbayev stated.

He emphasised that digitalisation is not just a modern trend but a complex, multi-layered process that demands coordinated efforts from all involved countries despite differences in approaches and levels of readiness.

“We conducted a comparative analysis of digital maturity levels across the TRACECA corridor. Based on this analysis and recommendations from international experts, we are now finalizing a detailed roadmap with World Bank support,” he concluded.

By Khagan Isayev