In May this year, the VII Astana Economic Forum will become not only a meeting place for the leaders of the international expert community, but also a platform where authoritative international organizations will celebrate some significant anniversaries.

In 2014, the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the International Trade Centre (ITC) will mark their 50th anniversary. The Monetary and Financial Conference of the United Nations, known as the Bretton Woods Conference, will also mark its 70th anniversary. They will all be celebrating in Astana as part of the 7th annual Astana Economic Forum (AEF).

Starting in 2008, the AEF annually brings together world experts and representatives of the business community to find solutions to fight the economic and social challenges of our time. The Forum has justified the trust shown by the international community. The AEF is becoming an attractive platform for many reputable organizations, whose leaders are choosing the capital of Kazakhstan as a full partner and innovative platform for exploring modern trends.

The Bretton Woods conference, which was held in July of 1944 in the state of New Hampshire, USA, laid the foundations of such organizations as the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Monetary Fund. Today on the eve of its 70th anniversary, the organizers of the 'Reinventing Bretton Woods Committee' are tackling the world's current economic problems, as well as the architecture of the global currency market, and to discuss these issues in Astana.

As part of the VII Astana Economic Forum, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, UNCTAD, which is engaged in the acceleration of trade and economic development, particularly in developing countries, will celebrate its 50th anniversary since the start of what became a highly successful range of activities. Established in 1964 as a permanent intergovernmental body, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development is a key body of the General Assembly concerned with the field of trade and development.

The International Trade Centre (ITC) - the Agency for Technical Cooperation of the UN Conference on Trade and Development and the World Trade Organization engaged in operational and business-oriented aspects of trade development - was established exactly 50 years ago. The Center is responsible for the development of markets, trade support services and the labor force.