Kazakhstani prime minister criticizes governors for their attempt to pose tiny growth in investments as a big achievement
Alikhan Smailov, prime minister of Kazakhstan, took a poke at governors of regions that haven’t succeeded in attracting investments.
«Some governors say they reached the rate of investment attractiveness of 1% to 2%. They wanted us to think this was a big achievement, but it’s not. This is the indicator of a lack of systematic work.»
Alikhan Smailov
He also said that the Ulytau region virtually failed to implement five big projects for $58.7 million.
«The region still needs more than $108.4 million of investments into fixed capital. The regional authorities should close this gap at the expense of new projects.»
Alikhan Smailov
According to the prime minister, the regional authorities should have done more to attract an additional amount of investments.
«Last year, the country as a whole reported an 8% growth in investments. However, the head of the state ordered the cabinet to increase investment in fixed capital to 25% by 2025. This means that we have to keep the rate at 10% each year.»
Alikhan Smailov
According to the press service of the cabinet, three regions fell behind the schedule: the Ulytau (75.6%), Atyrau (84.2%) and Jambyl (86.5%) regions.
Earlier, Smailov lashed out at governors for not doing enough to use all the money they budgeted for.
On January 26, the Eurasian Development Bank said it is going to invest $1.1 billion in Kazakhstan. The bank is interested in the following economic sectors: transport infrastructure and logistics, industrial production, agro-industrial complex, green energy and water resources, among others.
In November 2022, EY called Kazakhstan one of the most attractive countries for investments. More than two-thirds of investors (71%) who took part in the EY survey already work in Kazakhstan. The country’s market has a great potential for growth, while the government has developed a sustainable plan for economic rebounding from the COVID-19 pandemic. These factors have helped Kazakhstan be considered quite an attractive country for investments over the past three years.
