Kazakhstan will spend about 500 billion tenge (US$2.72 billion) to ensure economic growth this year, Minister of Economy and Budget Planning of Kazakhstan Yerbolat Dossayev said at a July 1 Central Communications Service (CCS) briefing. “Special measures on curbing inflation within the planned corridor were taken following the devaluation of the national currency. Inflation reached 4.5 percent over five months of this year,” the minister noted. Speaking of the results achieved due to implementation of the government’s road map, Dossayev said that local executive bodies had been provided with the necessary powers to form and use regional food stabilisation funds in order to prevent food deficits. “Five hundred billion tenge [US$2.72 billion] was allocated this year to support economic growth. This includes 100 billion tenge [US$544.87 million] for financial support of small and medium businesses, 250 billion tenge [US$1.36 billion] for banking sector recovery and 150 billion tenge [US$817.3 million] for the implementation of industrial and innovative projects,” the minister noted. International banks will cofinance some development programmes and investment projects in key sectors.
“Kazakhstan’s tariff policy programme to 2020 will be adopted in July of this year. The new programme on tariff policy till 2020 will be aimed at establishing an effective system of regulating monopolies,” Minister of Economy and Budget Planning Yerbolat Dossayev told a July 1 Central Communications Service (CCS) briefing, following a governmental meeting.“Yesterday, the draft tariff policy programme was submitted to the government. It will be accepted in July,” he said. He also said that, for the purpose of developing commodity markets, an action plan for the comprehensive analysis of regulated goods and services for their removal from the sphere of natural monopolies had been approved.
On July 1, Prime Minister Karim Massimov held a Cabinet meeting, during which a wide range of issues concerning the country’s socio-economic development were discussed. Minister of Economy and Budget Planning Yerbolat Dossayev reported on the implementation of the road map of the country’s priority socio-economic measures. According to him, 38 of 67 points of the road map have been executed. “Work has been carried out on additional economic stimula, the diversification and modernisation of the economy [and the] development of the export potential of the country,” he noted. “The implementation of the President’s instructions on additional stimulation of economic growth through a 1 trillion tenge [US$5.45 billion] allocation from the National Fund was started.” Dossayev also noted that as part of the directions of the road map, 143 projects worth 36.8 billion tenge (US$200.51 million) in the manufacturing industry have been approved. Eighty-one projects worth 20.4 billion tenge (US$111.17 million) have already been financed. “Fifty-five projects worth 13.7 billion tenge [US$74.64 million] have been approved in the food industry, [and] 28 projects totalling 6 billion tenge [US$32.7 million] have already been financed,” he added. The minister announced the development of a new mechanism for subsidising investments under the Agribusiness 2020 Programme. This mechanism provides for compensation for 20-80 percent of entrepreneurs’ costs when implementating investment projects. In addition, to address priority problems in the financial sector, a concept for the development of the financial environment until 2030 was developed. The government also adopted a comprehensive action plan to attract direct foreign and domestic investment, providing for negotiations with large foreign investors and multinational corporations. Minister of Agriculture Assylzhan Mamytbekov reported on the implementation of a project to develop the potential of cattle meat exports in Kazakhstan’s regions and on the implementation of financial rehabilitation measures for agricultural entities. Minister of Regional Development Bolat Zhamishev reported on approaches to the reform of the heating sectors of cities and towns and the mechanism of acceptance into operation of completed facilities. Following the meeting, the prime minister gave instructions to relevant state agencies.
