Interview with the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan as a guide to action

The President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev gave an interview to the newspaper “Egemen Kazakhstan”, in which he elaborated on the significant events of 2023 and outlined the main tasks for the coming years.

The main political reforms have been completed in the country, the Constitutional Court has begun its activities, and deputies of the Mazhilis and Maslikhat of all levels have been elected according to new rules.

A fair and competitive economic system is being created in Kazakhstan based on its diversification, elimination of monopolies, modernization of infrastructure, business support, and attraction of investments.

The President recalled that in his Address in September 2023, he announced a transition to a new economic model and set a goal of doubling GDP by 2029 to $450 billion. At the same time, the President emphasized that macroeconomic indicators are not so important; the real improvement in the quality of life of the country’s citizens is much more important. To achieve this, a number of important tasks must be solved, one of which is the implementation of large-scale projects in industry. First of all, the government is tasked with identifying such projects and developing an Infrastructure Development Plan. These projects are being developed jointly with representatives of large businesses, institutional investors and experts. This requires attracting investment, a significant contribution of which can be received from the Campaign for Privatization and Asset Recovery. In addition, the President signed a Decree on the creation of an Investment Headquarters with broad powers, including improving the investment climate in the country and the high-quality implementation of investment projects.

The second direction includes measures to implement systemic reforms that will establish a “game order” in all spheres of the economy. In particular, on behalf of the President, a new Tax Code is being developed, aimed at revising the relationship between the state and business. It is necessary to pay attention not only to methods of collecting payments, but also to creating favorable conditions for investors, while maintaining the balance of budget revenues and expenses. The new Budget Code is aimed at efficient spending of budget funds.

The President noted that the economic situation in the world will certainly affect our country. However, each test opens up new opportunities that must be used.

Al-Farabi Kazakh National University is a source of personnel for all sectors of the country’s economy. As a result of the reforms, many talented specialists had the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities in the public service. Currently, as the President emphasized, the role of young people who are able to acquire new professional skills and effectively use advanced knowledge is increasing. Our task is to apply all our knowledge and experience to the training of qualified personnel, patriots of the country.

CESc, docent of the Department of Economics at the HSEaB                  Bakhyt Baitanaeva