The Astana times - Kazakh economy grew 4.5% in five months of 2023, said Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov at a national forum of all-level maslikhat (local representative bodies) members of the Amanat Party on June 29, reported the Prime Minister’s press service.
Smailov noted that the economy witnessed positive dynamics in all main sectors, including a 12% increase in construction, 10% in trade, 9% in communications, 7% in transport and 3.3% in manufacturing.
With a 3.3% GDP growth last year, the country’s economy has adapted to the unfavorable foreign economic conditions, coming out on the path of sustainable development, Smailov said.
He stressed the direct link between economic growth and investment, with real volume in fixed assets increasing by 17.2% in five months.
“This year, we expect the economy to grow by 4.5-5% and by at least 6% in the medium term,” he said.
The Prime Minister named food price stabilization as the priority task for the government. The measures include forward contracts with agricultural producers, work of stabilization food funds, and the construction of vegetable storage facilities, among others.
“Annual inflation slowed down from 21% to 15.9% this May, and our task is to cut it twofold by the end of the year,” Smailov said. “We have all the necessary resources to achieve these goals. Maslikhats should be involved as well.”
According to the Prime Minister, the number of operating small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) grew 27% last year, with an 18% increase in employees to 4.1 million and in the share of SMEs in the economy from 33% to 36.5%.
Kazakhstan introduces a new regulatory policy to reduce the burden on the business, Smailov said. At least 9,000 unreasonable requirements for entrepreneurs out of more than 10,000 identified in 44 industries have been canceled.
He added that risk management systems would be automated in all areas of state regulation this year, which will cut the number of scheduled business inspections twofold.
“Overall, state support for businesses has been increased to 266 billion tenge ($585.4 million),” Smailov stated.
