By all accounts, TIACA’s fifth regional event, the TIACA Event Central Asia that took place in Astana, Kazakhstan, on 19-21JUN24, was a good success. Just shy of 400 attendees from across the industry, gathered to talk about the Central Asian air cargo market and how to develop Kazakhstan as a global air cargo hub given its favourable geography, able to provide effective rail/air links between China and Europe. The agenda included topics such as eCommerce, multimodal logistics, air cargo trends, innovation and digitalization, sustainability and industry regulations. One immediately tangible outcome was TIACA’s signing of 10 Memorandums of Understanding with the following Kazakhstan companies: Aktau International Airport JSC, Aliya Moldagulova International Airport JSC, JSC ‘Nursultan Nazarbayev International Airport’, Sary-Arka Airport JSC, Oral International Airport LLP, SCAT Airlines JSC, Almaty International Airport, Turkistan International Airport, Shymkent International Airport, and Civil Aviation Association of Kazakhstan. The goal is to support the region in becoming a global cargo hub.
Steven Polmans, TIACA Chair, declared: “We are proud to support the growth of Kazakhstan as an air cargo hub as it is in line with our mission and vision for the industry by promoting and encouraging business through connectivity. We not only encourage investment in known cargo hubs but also budding cargo hubs like Kazakhstan. We look forward to working with these organizations as they grow their cargo capacity and businesses.”
Of the TIACA event, he said that it “brought to light the important role that Kazakhstan has to play within the industry, and we are delighted to help promote their growth as an air cargo hub.”
Catalin Radu, General Director, Aviation Administration of Kazakhstan, said: “The opportunities that have been discussed during this event underline the importance of the role that Kazakhstan will play going forward within the global air cargo community […] There is a strategic goal, supported by our president and prime minister, to position Kazakhstan as an air cargo hub due to our favorable geographic location, historical context (Silk Way) and available resources. Our collaboration with The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA), the number one global air cargo industry association, will address challenges and set the agenda for Kazakhstan’s emergence as a regional hub.”
Glyn Hughes, Director General, TIACA, summed up: “This first TIACA event in Central Asia showed us, as well as the attendees, the focus and drive of the air cargo industry within this region. The conference program included a strong presence of diverse industry experts that displayed key knowledge and experience that will help drive the region forward as an air cargo hub. We are excited to work together to support their collective vision for growth and economic prosperity, whilst ensuring the key industry priorities of safety, security and compliance are fundamentally at the center of that growth.”
