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ASTANA: “China’s “One Belt, One Road” project and its impact for Central Asia”

8 June, 2017 @ 12:00 AM - 10 June, 2017 @ 12:00 AM

Nazarbayev University, Preliminary programme

Details

Day 1	8 June 2017
9.00 – 9.30	Registration
9.30 – 10.00	Welcome speech Shigeo Katsu, President, Nazarbayev University (TBC) Marlene Laruelle, Director CAP, George Washington University (by Skype)
Session 1: OBOR and Central Asia: Impact on the Region Chair: Dennis de Tray, Advisor to President, Nazarbayev University
10.00 – 10.15	Marek Jochec, Associate Professor of Finance, Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan Ensi Tszie, Adviser to the Minister of Economy, Kyrgyzstan “Economic aspects of strategic importance of China’s OBOR project”
10.15 – 10.30	Sarah Lain, Research Fellow, Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), Great Britain “China’s OBOR project and its impact for Central Asia”
10.30 – 11.00	Q/A session
11.00 – 11.30	Coffee-break
Session 2: Instruments and Mechanisms of OBOR Chair: Nicola Contessi, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Nazarbayev University
11.30 – 11.45	Safovudin Jaborov, PhD candidate, Tajik National University, Tajikistan “Chinese’s Loans in Central Asia: Development Aid or “Predatory Lending”?”
11.45 – 12.00	Hao Tian, Masters student, Georgetown University, USA “The mechanisms of allocating and receiving Chinese foreign aid”
12.00 – 12.15	Paulo Duarte, Researcher, Instituto do Oriente in Lisbon, Portugal “The One Belt One Road: which impacts for Central Asia?”
12.15 – 12.45	Q/A session
13.00 – 14.30	Lunch
Session 3: OBOR: Potential for Long-term Transformation Chair: Caress Schenk, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Nazarbayev University
14.30 – 14.45	Madina Bizhanova, Masters student, Georgetown University, USA “To what extent and how can the Silk Road Economic Belt contribute to economic diversification of Kazakhstan?”
14.45 – 15.00	Alexander Wolters, Director of the OSCE Academy in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan “Hegemonial or Multilateral? Chinese Investments and the OBOR Initiative in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan”
15.00 – 15.15	Sobir Kurbanov, Teaching Associate at George Washington University, Consultant at World Bank, USA “The Importance of Trade Liberalization and Investment Climate Reforms in Central Asia in the Context of China One Belt One Road Project”
15.30 – 16.00	Q/A Session
16.00 – 16.30	Coffee-break
Session 4: The Human Dimension Chair: Serik Orazgaliyev, Assistant Professor of Public Policy, Nazarbayev University
16.30 – 16.45	Liya Utyasheva, Expert, Institute of Migration Policy, Canada Yelena Sadovskaya, International Consultant in migration, Kazakhstan “Human Silk Road – People-to-people aspect of the Belt and Road initiative: a perspective from Central Asia”
16.45 – 17.00	Azad Garibov, Research Fellow, Center for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan “OBOR and Chinese Laborers in Central Asia: Reality and Public Perception”
17.00 – 17.30	Q/A session
17.30 – 18.00	Day 1: wrap-up
Day 2	9 June 2017
Session 5: Impact on Social Structure Chair: Anara Makatova, National Analytical Center
10.00 – 10.15	Vera Exnerova, Research Fellow, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic “Helping China´s OBOR Project in Central Asia: Role of Local Elites and Civil Society in Improving Impact of PRC in the Region”
10.15 – 10.30	Kemel Toktomushev, Special Assistant to the Director General, University of Central Asia in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan “One Belt, One Road: A New Source of Rent for Ruling Elites in Central Asia?”
10.30 – 11.00	Q/A session
11.00 – 11.30	Coffee-break
Session 6: Soft Power Dimensions Chair: Neil Collins, Professor of Political Science, Nazarbayev University
11.30 – 11.45	Bhavna Dave, Senior Lecturer, University of London, Great Britain “OBOR and China’s Soft Power: Perceptions of Chinese Norms and Developmental Practices in Kazakhstan”
11.45 – 12.00	Gaukhar Nursha, PhD candidate, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Kazakhstan “Chinese soft power in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan: A Confucius Institutes case-study”
12.00 – 12.30	Q/A session
12.30 – 13.00	Day 2: wrap-up Closing remarks