Economic Cooperation Organization

Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), an organization to promote economic and cultural cooperation between Islamic states. Founded in 1985, its original members were Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey, which had worked together for 15 years within the framework of Regional Cooperation Development (RCD). They were joined in 1992 by Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, and then by Afghanistan, and Kazakhstan. The organization is headed by a council of ministers, which meets annually, and seven committees oversee areas of cooperation: agriculture; economics; education, science, and culture; infrastructure and public works; industry and technology; transport and telecommunications; energy. A joint postal organization (the South and West Asia Postal Union) was established in 1988. By 2000, the ECO had six regional institutions (ECO Trade and Development Bank, ECO Reinsurance Company, ECO Shipping Company, ECO Air, ECO Chamber of Commerce, and ECO College of Insurance) and two specialized agencies (ECO Cultural Institute and ECO Science Foundation). The ECO is now gradually moving towards a customs union and a more integrated transport and communication infrastructure. There are also plans to create a network of gas and oil pipelines within the region. The headquarters are in Tehran, Iran.