From local bazaars to global markets: Unlocking e-commerce through regional integration in Central Asia

A Region on the Verge of a Digital Leap

E-commerce is rapidly expanding across Central Asia, driving job creation, fintech development, export growth, improved logistics, and overall economic progress. Namely, Uzbekistan’s e-commerce market grew fivefold from 2018 to 2022, reaching over $500 million in 2023 bringing Uzum marketplace as a first unicorn from the country.

Meanwhile, E-commerce in the Kyrgyz Republic is on track to hit $595 million by 2028. In Tajikistan, the launch of the E-Commerce Development Program 2025–2029 marks a bold policy, promising more favorable prospects for local sellers.

Still, this progress is uneven. In Tajikistan, rigid postal licensing drove out global couriers, restricting last-mile delivery. Uzbekistan faces a shadow economy and a tax burden that keeps many businesses informal. In the Kyrgyz Republic, high logistics costs and poor infrastructure make shipping goods costlier than producing them.

What’s striking is how similar these challenges are across the region, yet how deeply they vary in scale and visibility. Each country faces a common set of hurdles: unreliable delivery systems, regulatory complexity, shadow economy, and gaps in quality assurance. Addressing these collectively could be the region’s biggest competitive advantage.

The Logistics Challenge: Delivering on Time, Across Borders

The importance of regional collaboration is especially evident in the logistics sector across Central Asia.  Rural roads, customs inefficiencies, and emerging postal reliability in the Kyrgyz Republic make fast, affordable delivery difficult. Tajikistan faces similar obstacles, worsened by licensing practices that create entry barriers for private couriers. In Uzbekistan, outdated customs procedures still hamper cross-border transactions.

This is where the World Bank’s E-GATE Program, sponsored by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, steps in. The program supports countries in unlocking cross-border digital trade by streamlining border procedures, improving logistics, and helping firms expand internationally. In 2024 alone, E-GATE facilitated a over $23 million surge in B2B e-commerce sales. Notably, over half of the transactions occurred within Central Asia, underscoring the power of regional integration.

In May-June 2025, government officials, entrepreneurs, and development partners gathered in Tashkent for the first of three high-level forums under the E-GATE program, aimed at unlocking the region’s e-commerce potential through deeper integration. Two more events designed to stimulate the regional dialogue were held in Dushanbe and Bishkek. Each focused on cross-border logistics, digital payments, trade harmonization, and e-commerce jobs creation among the SMEs across Central Asia. Together, these events mark a turning point: from isolated national reforms to a shared regional agenda.

Policy Reforms Are Taking Root

Each government in Central Asia has taken critical first steps. Uzbekistan’s E-Commerce Strategy for 2023-2027 helps to reform the country’s tax and regulatory environment, aiming to simplify VAT, incentivize digital payments, and ease compliance for small businesses.

Tajikistan is reassessing its postal regulations to separate universal and non-universal services, encouraging more private participation. The government also launched the E-Commerce Development Program 2025–2029 marking a policy shift with a strong policy will.

In the Kyrgyz Republic, new laws passed in 2021 and 2022 have simplified taxes and formalized parts of the online market. These early steps are helping to reduce informality and improve business confidence.

While the specific policy mix may differ, the direction is consistent: smarter regulation, streamlined taxes, and better digital infrastructure.

Innovation at the Local Level: SMEs as Engines of Logistics Reform

Sometimes, the best solutions don’t come from governments alone. In the Kyrgyz Republic, logistics gaps have spurred local entrepreneurs to develop innovative delivery and warehousing models. Digital freight platforms, homegrown courier services, and rural logistics solutions are emerging across the country.

Policymakers and development partners can offer tax breaks, seed funding, and incubation programs targeting logistics startups and service providers. Connecting traditional logistics firms with tech entrepreneurs can also unlock new possibilities including AI-driven supply chains.

Events like the annual E-Commerce Expo in Bishkek or the Marketplaces Conference in Tashkent demonstrate how public-private dialogue can align reform agendas with market realities. The region needs more of these platforms to build trust, co-design solutions, and share lessons across borders.

Building Trust: The Importance of Certification and Standards

Across the region, especially in Tajikistan and the Kyrgyz Republic, limited access to certification labs and testing facilities makes it difficult for producers to meet global quality standards.

Exporters often rely on foreign labs for certification. An expensive and time-consuming process that excludes many small businesses. With more than 80% of reported trade barriers tied to technical standards, governments should prioritize investments in national quality infrastructure: build or expand local certification bodies, train SMEs on international standards like ISO or HACCP, and offer grants for compliance upgrades. Harmonizing standards across borders could also open the door to a "Made in Central Asia" brand recognized globally.

E-commerce doesn’t stop at borders. To ensure fair competition, lower costs, and faster delivery, digital trade, logistics, tax, and customs systems should be better integrated across Central Asia. This is a shared challenge and opportunity.

So, let’s build the future of Central Asian e-commerce together.