ASTANA – In the state-of-the-nation address, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has set ambitious yet achievable goals, Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov said at a Sept. 2 government meeting, noting that the country has all necessary tools and resources for this purpose, reported the Prime Minister’s press service.
Alikhan Smailov chairs a government meeting after the President’s state-of-the-nation address. Photo credit: primeminister.kz.
The government discussed various measures to implement the President’s address on the Economic Course of a Just Kazakhstan, aiming to promote economic growth and diversification while utilizing the country’s competitive advantages and the potential of key production factors, including labor, capital, resources, and technology.
According to Smailov, the government will focus on the economy’s priority sectors, such as producing high-value-added goods, transport and logistics, tourism, and the agro-industrial complex.
The Prime Minister stressed the need for a 30% reduction of tax reporting forms with complete digitization of control to reduce the fiscal burden on businesses and provide tax incentives to attract investors in the manufacturing industry, including exemptions from paying taxes for the first three years.
Regarding the draft of the new Budget Code, Smailov noted it would incorporate provisions for a block budget, transferring a portion of revenues from taxes to the second level of the funding and enabling regions to determine tax preferences for their local budgets.
Speaking of resetting the tariff policy, the Prime Minister highlighted the importance of introducing digital tools for control and fixing counter obligations by increasing monopolists’ responsibility.
He emphasized the need to create legislative incentives to support the consolidation of small businesses by combining the Business Roadmap and Economy of Simple Things programs. The introduction of turnkey construction tools in public procurement and the launch of the off-take system are also necessary.
“A newly established Ministry of Transport should accelerate major railway projects, expand port facilities with foreign company involvement, and reconstruct more than 4,000 kilometers of roads by 2029,” Smailov pointed out.
He said the Ministry of Industry should speed up the development of the manufacturing sector, focusing on high-processing clusters and utilization of internal resources.
As stated by the Prime Minister, the defense industry will aim for high localization, technology transfer, and support for domestic enterprises through financing from the fund for developing the defense industry complex.
Smailov noted that the government will take measures to attract investment in the exploration and development of new gas fields, and finalize a comprehensive plan for implementing major oil and gas and petrochemical projects until 2027 to fulfill the tasks for further gasification of the country.
“Another new Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation will prioritize water-saving technologies, cooperation on transboundary river resources, introduction of new tariff policy and regulations, and construction of modern water infrastructure,” he said.
Striving for ecological safety and environmental protection, the Ministry of Ecology, with stakeholders, was assigned to develop a roadmap to improve the environment around large-scale industries.
Following the President’s instruction, the Ministry of Agriculture will work on increasing the share of processed products in the agro-industrial complex up to 70% and renewing the fleet of agricultural machinery by 8-10% per year.
Smailov recalled that an important stabilizing role is assigned to the Food Corporation, which will intervene to curb price growth in the food market.
Aiming to bring the export of IT services to $1 billion, the government will focus on creating enterprises with international companies and developing venture financing.
“The activities of Otbasy Bank will be reoriented to provide housing primarily for residents of districts, single-industry towns, and villages,” Smailov said.
Proceeding to the social block, the Prime Minister highlighted the importance of raising the minimum wage, adopting a Comprehensive Labor Development Plan 2030 and a Concept of safe labor until 2030, and providing special social benefits for those in harmful industries.
Elaborating on education, Smailov instructed to improve teachers’ competence by developing courses on new topics and in-demand competencies, and to continue working on increasing the speed of the Internet and providing free access to digital educational resources.
Along with strengthening psychological services, the government should ensure quality implementation of the Comprehensive Plan to protect children from violence and prevent suicide.
“The Ministry of Science, with government agencies and second-tier banks, should promptly work out the implementation of the Keleshek Unified Voluntary Savings System,” he said.
The Prime Minister instructed to develop proposals for supporting the creative industry, establishing creative industry centers in each region, and creating a roadmap for 15 major tourism projects.
In conclusion, Smailov emphasized the importance of effective and coherent work by all government agencies to achieve the goals and reforms set by the President.
