Key Findings
CPMM road and rail transport data for the Kyrgyz Republic in 2022 showed the following year-on-year changes from 2021:
- The time needed to cross the border by road dropped 24% from 3.7 hours in 2021 to 2.8 hours in 2022. The reduction of outbound road crossing time from 4.7 hours to 2.1 hours was a major factor.
- Road crossing cost rose to $31 from $23, reflecting the costs of trailer swapping at neutral zones mandated by the PRC government.
- Total road transport costs were down from $2,194 to $1,888 as road freight rates returned to the lower long-term pattern, COVID-19 controls eased, and more drivers resumed work as the pandemic health threats diminished.
- Road SWOD and SWD stayed about the same, but rail SWOD and SWD both increased.
- The most notable border delay occurred at the Torugart BCP, where outbound road crossings took an average of 50.1 hours, a jump from 25.8 hours in 2021 and only 2.4 hours in 2020.
Table 3.9: Trade Facilitation Indicators in the Kyrgyz Republic, 2020–2022
| Road Transport | Rail Transport | |||||||
| 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | |||
| TFI1 | Time taken to clear a border-crossing point (hour) | 2.1 | 3.7 | 2.8 | 1.7 | 1.6 | 1.0 | |
| Outbound | 1.8 | 4.7 | 2.1 | – | – | – | ||
| Inbound | 2.4 | 2.8 | 3.2 | 1.7 | 1.6 | 1.0 | ||
| TFI2 | Cost incurred at border-crossing clearance ($) | 27 | 23 | 31 | – | 175 | – | |
| Outbound | 24 | 22 | 26 | – | – | – | ||
| Inbound | 30 | 25 | 34 | – | 175 | – | ||
| TFI3 | Cost incurred to travel a corridor section ($, per 500km, per 20-ton cargo) | 1,346 | 2,194 | 1,888 | – | 413 | 556 | |
| TFI4 | Speed to travel on CAREC Corridors (km/h) | 26.9 | 27.0 | 26.5 | 16.2 | 19.4 | 24.5 | |
| SWOD | Speed without Delay (km/h) | 49.4 | 52.5 | 51.8 | 20.0 | 21.2 | 30.1 | |
km = kilometer, km/h = kilometers per hour, SWOD = speed without delay, TFI = trade facilitation indicator.
Source: Asian Development Bank.
Table 3.10: Border-Crossing Performance in the Kyrgyz Republic, 2020–2022
| BCP, Corridor and Direction of Trade | Duration, hours | Cost, $ | |||||||
| 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | ||||
| Road Transport | |||||||||
| Dostuk | Outbound | 2.2 | 1.6 | 0.6 | 25 | 10 | 10 | ||
| Inbound | 1.9 | 2.5 | 0.4 | 18 | 11 | 4 | |||
| Chaldovar | Outbound | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| Inbound | 6.8 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 8 | 33 | 44 | |||
| Karamyk | Outbound | 2.2 | 2.2 | 2.3 | 42 | 45 | 48 | ||
| Inbound | 2.1 | 2.4 | – | 25 | 12 | – | |||
| Kyzyl-Bel | Outbound | 1.7 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 22 | 12 | 14 | ||
| Inbound | 1.7 | – | – | 24 | – | – | |||
| Torugart | Outbound | 2.4 | 25.8 | 50.1 | – | 2 | 4 | ||
| Inbound | 2.3 | 4.1 | 5.1 | 30 | 40 | 44 | |||
| Irkeshtam | Outbound | 3.7 | 11.5 | – | 6 | 1 | – | ||
| Inbound | 1.8 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 106 | 12 | 3 | |||
| Ak-Tilek | Outbound | 1.1 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 6 | 7 | 4 | ||
| Inbound | 1.6 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 7 | 7 | 2 | |||
| Rail Transport | |||||||||
| Turksib | Outbound | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| Inbound | 1.7 | 1.6 | 1.0 | – | 175 | – | |||
BCP = border-crossing point.
Source: Asian Development Bank.
Trends and Developments
Much of the increase in border crossing time and cost can be attributed to stringent PRC pandemic control processes at its international borders. While truck drivers from the Kyrgyz Republic who had negative COVID-19 test results could enter neighboring Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the PRC required trailer swaps at border neutral zones to eliminate close contact between its drivers and those from other countries. The time and cost to orchestrate and execute these swaps were considerable. Fortunately, the PRC announced the reopening of its border and the end to its highly restrictive border management practices at the end of 2022. Goods flow between the Kyrgyz Republic and the PRC returned to the pre-pandemic normal as 2023 began.
After more than 2 decades of negotiating the construction of a rail link between the PRC and Uzbekistan via Kyrgyz Republic, the governments of Kyrgyz Republic, PRC and Uzbekistan signed an agreement on 14 September 2022 at the Tashkent Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit that authorizes China Railway’s First Survey and Design Institute to study the feasibility of developing the China–Kyrgyzstan–Uzbekistan Railway. This study was scheduled for completion by mid-2023, with the goal of starting construction later in that year. However, as this report is being written, there appears to be a delay in the approval process for constructing this railroad.
Plans were also made to initiate a multimodal service via the Kyrgyz Republic between Kashi in the PRC and Tashkent in Uzbekistan, passing through the Irkeshtam and Dostuk BCPs. This new service was successfully launched in 2023.
Recommendations
Fully develop the country’s transit potential. The Kyrgyz Republic can secure substantial economic gains by connecting the PRC with other CAREC countries, especially Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan. There are encouraging signs that the country is starting to exploit its transit potential. Develop cold chain infrastructure. Creating a network of cold chain logistics facilities for perishable products would enable the Kyrgyz Republic to stabilize supplies and fetch the best price for agricultural production that is so important to its economy. This would involve the development of temperature-controlled facilities, a modern refrigerated vehicle fleet, certified testing laboratories, and repair and maintenance centers for refrigerated trucks and containers. A training program in cold chain logistics would also be essential. Temperature-controlled facilities and refrigerated trucks are highly capital-intensive, and operators must learn how to manage them efficiently if they are to deliver adequate returns.