ASTANA – Kazakhstan is shifting its investment strategy from attracting foreign capital in terms of volume to directing investments toward projects that create production capacity, deepen processing, expand exports and develop local supply chains, according to Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Ardak Zebeshev.
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Kazakhstan has accumulated $156.4 billion in foreign investment, making it the largest recipient of foreign direct investment in Central Asia. The next challenge, according to Zebeshev, is to turn that capital into broader economic value.
“Several years ago, the main indicator was the volume of foreign direct investment received during the year. This indicator is still important for the macroeconomy, but it says little about the quality of the investment process,” he told the Kazinform news agency.
The shift comes as global competition for investment becomes increasingly focused on specific parts of production chains, including processing, components, engineering, digital infrastructure and export-oriented manufacturing.
From attracting investors to targeting economic needs
According to Zebeshev, Kazakhstan is entering a new stage in which investment policy will focus on projects capable of creating new production capacity and higher-value products.
“The new stage for Kazakhstan is about directing capital toward industries capable of creating new production capacities, increasing the depth of processing, forming supply chains and expanding exports of products with high added value,” he said.
This approach reflects broader changes in global investment flows. Citing UNCTAD data, Zebeshev said global foreign direct investment increased 6% in 2025 to $1.6 trillion, but growth was uneven. Investment in developed economies rose 11%, compared with 2% in developing economies, while the number of cross-border transactions declined 7%.
Capital is increasingly concentrated in areas such as data centres, semiconductors and digital infrastructure, he said. For Kazakhstan, the restructuring of global supply chains creates opportunities in areas where the country can combine natural resources, energy, transit infrastructure and access to several major markets.
“Companies are reconsidering where to locate new capacities. Demand is growing for energy-intensive digital infrastructure, critical materials, new logistics routes and raw-material processing. Countries that can simultaneously offer resources, energy, transit and access to several markets stand to benefit,” Zebeshev said.
Investment flows show changing priorities
Kazakhstan remains the largest recipient of foreign direct investment in Central Asia, accounting for about 70% of the region’s accumulated investment, according to Zebeshev.
At the end of 2025, accumulated foreign investment in Kazakhstan reached $156.4 billion, equivalent to around 51% of GDP. In the first half of 2026, the country attracted another $9.4 billion.
The structure of new investment is also changing. Trade accounted for the largest share in the first half of the year, attracting $2.2 billion, followed by financial and insurance activities with $1.9 billion, manufacturing with $1.8 billion, construction with $1.1 billion and mining with $816 million.
The figures underline the scale of Kazakhstan’s existing investment base, but the government is also looking at what those investments produce inside the economy.
“Earlier, we promoted Kazakhstan as a country with a resource base and a favourable geographical position. Now a more targeted approach is being formed, based on investment proposals for specific niches,” Zebeshev said.
An investment proposal, he explained, is intended to assess the full economic potential of a particular industry or product, including its competitive advantages and the reasons why production should be located in Kazakhstan.
“We are essentially moving from the ‘investor–project’ model to the ‘economic need–project–investor’ model,” he said.
Under the first model, the country responds to an investor’s existing interest. Under the second, investment becomes an instrument for addressing a specific economic development need.
From capital volume to economic impact
For Kazakhstan, the next stage of investment policy does not mean abandoning traditional measures of foreign investment.
“The volume of direct foreign investment remains important as an indicator of the scale of international capital’s participation in the economy. However, assessing the structural result requires a broader set of parameters,” Zebeshev said.
These include the number of production facilities launched, the depth of localization, participation of domestic suppliers, production of higher-value goods, exports, productivity and the retention of technological competencies within Kazakhstan.
The country already has many of the basic advantages needed to compete for such investments, including natural resources, energy potential, transport connectivity and access to major markets across Eurasia and China.
“The next stage does not imply abandoning quantitative targets, but requires a more comprehensive assessment of results. The scale of attracted capital should be considered together with the production capacities, supply chains, export opportunities and technological competencies that are formed inside the country,” Zebeshev said.
