GOVERNMENT: Kazakhstan speeds up development of infrastructure and helps neighboring countries

The enlarged sitting of the Government with the participation of President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev was held this week. The results of the social and economic development of the country in 2015 were summed up at the sitting as well as the future measures on ensuring economic growth defined.

The Head of State drew attention of the necessity to pay special attention to further diversification of the economy through implementation of state programs on industrialization and "Nurly Zhol", implementation of projects of the agro-industrial complex and support of small and medium-sized business.

The President gave a number of specific instructions to the Government including the instructions on speeding up the process of implementation of the infrastructure projects. Additional funds will be allocated for this purpose as well. It was also ordered to invest the savings of the depositors of the National Pension Savings Fund in the amount of almost one and a half trillion tenge in the economy of the country for preserving and ensuring profitability of the savings.

In whole, the measures taken on the instructions of the Head of State will ensure employment of 60 thousand people including creation of 18 thousand new jobs.

Besides, with the consideration of external conditions, the Government was ordered to ensure strict control over disbursement of the allocated funds.

Prime Minister Karim Massimov held a meeting with Shamshad Akhtar, the Executive Secretary of United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. At the meeting the sides discussed the issues of strengthening of bilateral and multilateral cooperation between Kazakhstan and the ESCAP.

First Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Bakytzhan Sagintayev held a sitting of the Commission for International Humanitarian Assistance. Taking into account the situation in the areas of Tajikistan that suffered from the natural disasters the Commission recommended the Government of Kazakhstan to render official humanitarian assistance to Tajikistan. Besides, the humanitarian assistance will also be rendered to Kyrgyzstan that had to deal with the consequences of the strong earthquake.

B. Sagintayev also met with First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Igor Shuvalov in Moscow. The interlocutors discussed the state of trade and economic relations between Kazakhstan and Russia, cooperation in the sphere of industry and in the transit-transport and communication sectors as well as the relevant issues within the Eurasian Economic Union.

N. Nazarbayev also received Energy Minister of Kazakhstan Vladimir Shkolnik who reported on the situation in the oil and gas sector, energy, environment sphere, nuclear energy and other directions of the activity of the ministry.