Kazakhstan to secure funding from World Bank for infrastructure projects
The Kazakh Majilis has ratified the Framework Partnership Agreement between Kazakhstan and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) aimed at expanding cooperation, Qazinform News Agency correspondent reports.
Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister – National Economy Minister Serik Zhumangarin recalled on Wednesday that the agreement was signed on June 18, 2025, in Astana, and marks a new stage of strategic interaction with the World Bank.
The Framework Agreement establishes provisions that differ from national legislation regarding the application of the World Bank’s policies and rules in implementing loans under state guarantees and grant-funded projects.
In particular, it provides for the application of the World Bank Group’s procurement rules for goods, works, and services, as well as anti-corruption, environmental, social, labor, gender standards, and disclosure requirements.
It (World Bank) has been operating in our country for more than 30 years. Over 50 projects have been implemented with a total value exceeding eight billion dollars in the areas of transport, education, environmental protection, digitalization, and finance. The World Bank’s rules for implementing state-guaranteed loans are aligned with global best practices applied in most developing countries, said Zhumangarin.
The deputy premier specified that state-guaranteed loans are often a form of concessional long-term financing (up to 35 years) that does not lead to an increase in public debt.
According to him, after the agreement enters into force, work will begin on financing a number of infrastructure projects, including:
- reconstruction and construction of the Zhezkazgan-Karaganda and Beineu-Saksaulsk highways;
- the railway communication and transport connectivity transformation project in Kazakhstan;
- construction of the Kambarata HPP-1 and others.
It is expected that, in the long term, the implementation of World Bank projects under the agreement will contribute to GDP growth, job creation, development of the private sector and SMEs, stimulation of innovation, and improvement of the investment climate.
A similar agreement was ratified between the Kazakh Government and the Asian Development Bank in 2020.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency sat down with World Bank Country Manager for Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan Andrei Mikhnev, who spoke about the priorities of the forthcoming Country Partnership Framework for 2026 to 2031, the expected scale and instruments of financial support, and the key drivers shaping economic prospects in Kazakhstan and the broader Central Asia region.