The Ports and Logistics Scoping Study in CAREC Countries says that the existing conflicts between the CAREC member countries reduce the corridor's competitiveness.
''Endless plains in some countries, and some of the highest and less practicable mountain ranges in other. Vast empty areas are found in Mongolia or Kazakhstan and some of the highest population densities along the Indus valley in Pakistan. Despite long distances, the vast plains of Xinjian, Kazakhstan, and the Russian Federation have become busy corridors for east–west trade, while the Karakoram, Tian Shan, Pamir, and associated ranges are still major barriers that limit north–south trade.
A shared history of empires built and dismembered as well as the impact of modern geopolitics has left a legacy of conflicts and human barriers to trade and movement of goods. A non-exhaustive list of closed or almost-closed borders that hamper flows of goods includes Armenia with Azerbaijan, Georgia with the Russian Federation in Abkhazia and Ossetia, or India with Pakistan. Additionally, moving goods to and from or across Iran has been drastically reduced as a result of sanctions, as well as in and out or across Afghanistan as a result of security concerns. One of the more populated areas in Central Asia, the Fergana Valley, is a jigsaw of border lines that imply that basic products that could be sourced a stone throw away need to be delivered through an official border crossing located dozens of kilometers afar,'' the study reads.
According to the Ports and Logistics Scoping Study, the World Bank Logistics Performance Index (LPI) proves to be low in the majority of the member countries of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC).
The document says that out of 11 CAREC member countries, eight ranks lower than 100th, with only three_ China (27th), Kazakhstan (77th), and Pakistan (95th) _ ranking higher.
Despite the existing issues, the document says that Central Asia is one of the most active regions worldwide, where cargo turnover increases by two-digit numbers. Hypothetically, the turnover will have increased by three digits by 2050.
CAREC is deemed one of the most expensive logistic systems globally.
