Kyrgyz PM, USAID administrator discuss implementation, development of projects in Kyrgyzstan

BISHKEK. April 17 (Interfax) - Kyrgyz Prime Minister Akylbek Japarov and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Samantha Power have discussed the status of USAID projects in Kyrgyzstan at a meeting in Washington.

"The sides discussed the status and development prospects of the projects implemented by the agency in the short and middle term, highlighting projects aimed to improve the living standards of people in rural and remote areas of Kyrgyzstan," the Kyrgyz government press service said on Wednesday.

The national economy is sustainably developing, which is proven by the national indicators of 2023 and the first quarter of 2024, Japarov said.

"Over the past three years, the economic growth neared 7% on the average (5.5% in 2021, 6.3% in 2022, and 9% in 2023). The economic growth reached 8.8% in the first quarter of this year, including 9.8% without Kumtor [the biggest gold deposit in the country]," the press service quoted Japarov as saying.

The sides also discussed bilateral interaction in education, energy, agriculture, digital transformation and renewable energy, the press service said.