The region
The region we connect with the world
Our definition sets the boundary of what we convene. The eighteen countries are listed on our Countries page.
Baku, Azerbaijan
Our definition
Our definition
The Greater Caspian Region includes 18 countries surrounding the Caspian Sea, the Black Sea, South Caucasus, and Central Asia up to Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Caspian littoral
South Caucasus
Central Asia
Black Sea basin and Eastern Europe
South Asia
In figures
The figures we publish
18
Countries
680+Million People
Population
$12.8Trillion (PPP)
Gross domestic product
PPP is purchasing power parity
10Million km²
Area
Energy and critical minerals
Resource base
From hydrocarbons to critical metals
6.6%in 2025
Central Asia growth
About four times the rate of most western European economies
2.6%a year, 2014–2024
Growth over a decade
Real terms; euro area achieved 1.5% a year
+110Million Tons of Breakbulk Cargo
Breakbulk cargo
+500,000TEU Containers
Containers
TEU is the twenty-foot equivalent unit
Source Our regional figures draw on our own analysis with a research and consulting partner.
The decade growth rate is our own calculation from annual real gross domestic product growth by country, compiled by countryeconomy.com from International Monetary Fund, World Bank, Eurostat and national statistical office accounts (read 3 August 2026). The euro-area figure uses the same method and source data.
Why it matters
Why the region matters
01The world
The region matters to the world for its energy and food security, its people, its logistics and its markets for products and technology. It was also home to some of the world's oldest civilisations.
02Energy
Energy comes first. The region holds some of the world's largest natural-gas reserves, alongside significant wind, solar and hydro potential. Our What we work on page sets out how we convene on it.
03Food
Fertilisers of Greater Caspian origin can support enough wheat to feed more than 1.5 billion people, a population on the scale of India or China.
04Corridors
The region's north–south and east–west corridors carry trade between its countries. Whether cargo moves at all depends on governments coordinating with one another, which we take up on our What we work on page.
05The case
Our case is that 680+ million people and $12.8 trillion (PPP) are worth addressing as one region. Caspian Week (opens the Caspian Week site in a new tab) is the forum where we convene around that case.
