Kurdistan Region, Uzbekistan Move to Strengthen Trade With Planned Erbil Hub

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Plans to establish an Uzbek Trade Center in Erbil are emerging as a key step in the Kurdistan Region's efforts to broaden its international commercial partnerships, with business leaders describing the initiative as a platform for expanding trade, investment, and private-sector cooperation between the Kurdistan Region and one of Central Asia's fastest-growing economies.

Gaylan Haji Saeed, President of the Erbil Chamber of Commerce, said discussions on opening the center will form one of the principal objectives of an upcoming economic mission to Uzbekistan. 

The proposed facility is envisioned as a permanent commercial gateway that would strengthen institutional links between businesses in both markets while creating new opportunities for exporters, manufacturers, investors, and entrepreneurs.

Beyond serving as a venue for promoting goods and services, the trade center is expected to facilitate direct business engagement, simplify commercial exchanges, and encourage long-term partnerships between companies seeking to expand across regional markets.

Its establishment would also underscore the Kurdistan Region's growing role as a destination for international investment and cross-border commerce.

The initiative comes as economic relations between the Kurdistan Region and Uzbekistan enter a more active phase following months of expanding dialogue between public institutions and the private sector.

According to Saeed, Uzbekistan has demonstrated increasing interest in the Kurdistan Region's market, while regional businesses are looking to build stronger connections with Central Asian industries.

The next milestone in that process will be a large-scale delegation traveling to Tashkent to participate in a major economic forum beginning Friday.

The mission will bring together approximately 170 participants, including representatives from the Kurdistan Region's chambers of commerce, business leaders from across Kurdistan, and senior government officials.

The size and composition of the delegation reflect an effort to move beyond introductory exchanges toward practical commercial cooperation.

During the visit, participants are scheduled to meet officials from four key Uzbek ministries alongside representatives of the country's private sector to identify areas where investment and industrial collaboration can be expanded.

Discussions are expected to focus on several sectors viewed as offering significant potential for both sides.

Textile and garment manufacturing will feature prominently, reflecting Uzbekistan's established capabilities in the industry, while talks will also cover energy cooperation and fertilizer production for agriculture, another area in which Uzbek manufacturers have developed considerable expertise.

Rather than concentrating on individual transactions, the meetings are intended to establish broader frameworks for sustained business engagement, encouraging companies to explore partnerships that could diversify trade and strengthen supply chains between the two economies.

The planned trade center represents a practical extension of those ambitions.

By creating a dedicated commercial presence in Erbil, officials hope businesses from Uzbekistan will gain easier access to local markets, while companies from the Kurdistan Region will benefit from stronger institutional support when pursuing opportunities with Central Asian partners.

The proposal also builds on groundwork established through earlier exchanges.

Saeed noted that two Uzbek delegations visited the Kurdistan Region last year to explore closer economic cooperation.

Those meetings culminated in the signing of a memorandum of understanding, providing a formal framework for expanding bilateral commercial relations.

The forthcoming mission to Tashkent marks the next stage of that relationship, shifting attention from preliminary agreements toward concrete initiatives designed to generate investment, facilitate trade, and deepen cooperation between the two business communities.

If realized, the Uzbek Trade Center would stand as one of the most visible outcomes of that effort, symbolizing the Kurdistan Region's broader strategy of diversifying its international economic partnerships while strengthening its position as a regional hub for commerce linking the Middle East with emerging markets across Central Asia.