State programme encourages family farms, more subsidies, meat exports

ASTANA – Export refunds for processed agricultural products will be $2.2 billion in 2021, 2.3 times higher than the $945 million recorded in 2015, reported Minister of National Economy Timur Suleimenov at a June 19 meeting.

Photo credit: 24.kz.

Photo credit: 24.kz.

Asian and Middle Eastern countries including China, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam are identified as attractive export markets with stable growth in importing beef and lamb.

Attracted investments will reach 751.2 billion tenge (US$2.2 billion) in 2021 due to investment subsidies.

“The index of physical volume of gross farm income will increase twofold by 2021 in comparison with 2015. The index of physical volume of investment in fixed assets in agriculture will increase fivefold in 2021 compared to 2015,” he said.

The state programme on agriculture development will attract four tenge (US$0.01) of private investments for one tenge (US$0.002) of budget funds. Importing breeding stock for further breed transformation will increase the gross production in cattle breeding by 200 billion tenge (US$588 million), or 10 percent.

First Vice Minister of Agriculture Arman Yevniyev reported the ministry created long-term sectoral programmes for 10 years or more to develop meat, dairy and poultry farming, irrigated lands and the sugar industry.

First Vice Minister of Agriculture Arman Yevniyev.

First Vice Minister of Agriculture Arman Yevniyev.

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev set the task Jan. 9 to increase labour productivity and export processed agricultural products at least 2.5 times in a five-year period in his “New Opportunities under the Fourth Industrial Revolution” state-of-the-nation address.

“The state programme for the agro-industrial complex will solve issues related to the digitisation of agribusiness, technical regulation, taxation and rural area development,” said Yevniyev.

The small family farms operated as anchor cooperatives consisting of cattle farms, industrial cattle-fattening areas and modern meat processing complexes will be the basis of the livestock development programme.

More than 80,000 family farms will be created for cattle, sheep and horse breeding. Pasture area will be expanded from 58 million hectares to 100 million hectares and the number of cattle will increase to 15 million head and sheep to 30 million.

Programme participants will be supported in terms of land allocation, preferential loans for livestock and equipment purchase and to develop pasture infrastructure.

Dairy farming will also be operated as family farms consisting of dairy farms, industrial dairy farms and milk processing factories. The number of family farms will be increased from 380 to 930, large dairy farms from 108 to 170 and milk processing factories from 163 to 174. As a result, milk production will grow by one million tonnes.

Poultry production is expected to increase fourfold and 150,000 tonnes of product will go for export.

“The draft state programme provides measures to develop rural areas. The project approach will reduce bureaucratic barriers in the development and approval of documents and provide flexibility in decision making,” said Yevniyev.


Get The Astana Times stories sent directly to you! Sign up via the website or subscribe to our Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Telegram, YouTube and Tiktok!