By BILQIS BAHARI
KUALA LUMPUR: The Republic of Kazakhstan welcomes more investors, particularly from Malaysia, to participate in its large-scale privatisation of Government-Owned Companies (GOC) program, which started last year until 2020.
The Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Malaysia Daniyar Sarekenov said the initiative aims at reducing the state’s presence in the business and correlates with the Government of Kazakhstan’s policy to strengthen the country’s economy via private sector development.
He said the state ownership in GOCs in Kazakhstan would be reduced to the level of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member states, which is at 15 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP).
“In this regard, I am greatly pleased to invite Malaysian companies to take part in the GOC privatisation program. It would undoubtedly open new investment opportunities in one of the most dynamic regions,” Sarekenov told NST Business in an interview recently.
Sarekenov also said one of the instructions from Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev is to achieve developed economy status and create a favourable investment climate with aims to attract higher foreign investments into the country.
Currently, Kazakhstan took 35th place in the ranking of ‘Doing Business 2017’ of the World Bank and has the most favourable position in conditions for business as compared to other Customs Union countries such as Belarus and Russia.
Sarekenov said some of the measures taken to welcome foreign investments include the creation of Kazakh Invest National Company, which aims to provide full support to foreign investments.
It includes the support from the development of idea to the commencement of production in Kazakhstan and the subsequent export.
“In other words, investment project support is not limited to consulting activities only, but extends up to the release and dispatch of products to consumers. Such a comprehensive approach allows us to work with each of our partners more efficiently and rationally that establishes productive cooperation,” Sarekenov said.
He added that in the last 12 years, Kazakhstan has attracted foreign direct investments (FDI) of over US$240 billon.
A task force to protect the rights of foreign investors, the Investment Ombudsman, was also created whereby the Kazakhstan Government would provide various guarantees that minimise risks an investor may incur in carrying out investment activities in the country.
Foreign investors could also participate in the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) as it will become a financial gateway of Eurasia, providing trade and financial flows between developed and developing countries of East and West.
Sarekenov said starting from January 1, 2018, the AIFC will introduce a preferential tax regime, where its members will be exempted from corporate income tax, property and land taxes until January 1, 2068.
Also, the AIFC members would get free-of-lease office space for the first two years of operation until end-2019.
AIFC will be located at the former Astana EXPO location in Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana.
“Citizens of countries of the OECD, Singapore, the UAE, Monaco and Malaysia will have visa-free entry to Kazakhstan for a period of 30 days. This policy is designed to promote an even more favourable investment climate and develop the country’s tourism potential,” Sarekenov said.
Currently, Kazakhstan is also working together with the World Bank to develop a National Investment Strategy.
The strategy is aimed to provide comprehensive vision and define clear coordination mechanisms for all Kazakhstan’s state bodies and national companies, sequence and algorithm of their interaction, target sources of investments and measure to improve the investment climate in Kazakhstan.
Sarekenov said the attraction of foreign investments into Kazakhstan is one of the measures taken as the country plans to transition into a new model of economic growth. This measure is part of Kazakhstan’s third modernisation plan.
“Every year, the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, addresses the Kazakhstan nation by introducing the most important issues of the state strategy and his own position on the necessity of certain steps and solutions.”
“This year, in the address to the nation on the ‘Third Modernisation of Kazakhstan: Global Competitiveness,’ our President clearly sets out the country’s development in the new stage,” Sarekenov added.
Kazakhstan’s first modernisation plan was the creation of a new state on the principles of market economy while the second plan was the implementation of the country’s 2030 strategy and the formation of Astana as the new capital of Kazakhstan.
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