Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan eye establishment of duty-free special zone on border
Governor of Mangistau region Nurdaulet Kilybay voiced a number of proposals to expand trade and economic ties between the region and Uzbekistan at the Joint Interregional Forum of the Governments of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Kazinform News Agency reports.
According to the press service of the governor of Mangistau region, the road, which is set to connect Mangistau and Uzbekistan, is under construction. The road is to lead to the Tazhen customs post in Kazakhstan. On October 21, the new road from the center of Karakalpakstan to the border of Kazakhstan was commissioned. All of this is set to increase the trade turnover between Mangistau region and Uzbekistan in the future.
According to Kilybay, the bulk of food products, vegetables, fruits and dried fruits come from Bukhara, Samarkand, Nurkus and Syrdarya to the region’s wholesale markets. The Tazhen customs post handles around 250-300 trucks per day, of which 25-30 trucks go to Mangistau region, carrying nearly 11 thousand tons of goods.
Our delegation includes the founder of the wholesale distribution center Aktau, which is among the country’s largest ones. The center is ready to provide a necessary trade space and expect specific steps from Uzbek entrepreneurs. We’d like to open a trade space ‘Made in Uzbekistan’ there and hold agricultural fairs, said Kilybay.
The governor of Mangistau region also suggested opening a duty-free special zone modelled after the Khorgoz trade complex in the cross-border region in order to boost trade relations between the two countries. Opening of the trade and economic zone will make it possible to increase the trade turnover between Mangistau region and Uzbekistan by four times.
The meeting also discussed the cooperation in tourism and agriculture. For instance, tour packages, offering tours of the historic, cultural and tourist sites of Mangistau region, have been developed for tour operators from Uzbekistan. The tours are set to be commenced starting from 2025.
One of the priority areas in the development of Mangistau region is agriculture, as there are plans to jointly develop greenhouse farms in our regions. For our part, we’re ready to subsidize a part of the funds invested, costs on water, fertilizers, provide necessary infrastructure, offer preferential low-interest loans and suitable land plots, said Kilybay.
In his speech, the head of Mangistau region expressed his readiness to support all the initiatives aimed at enhancing bilateral cooperation and expanding economic ties with Uzbekistan, including with the Republic of Karakalpakstan.
Following the meeting, the agreement was signed on cooperation between the administration of Mangistau region and Karakalpakstan, Beyneu and Khodzheyli districts.
Another agreement was concluded between Uzbekistan's Nukus dilisha LLP, the administration of Beyneu district and the wholesale distribution center Aktau. Uzbek business people were ready to built major trade centers in Aktau and Beyneu district.
Currently, there are 140 enterprises with involvement of Uzbek capital in Mangistau region. In 2023, the external trade of the region with Uzbekistan was at 13.2 million US dollars. The share of imports from Uzbekistan stands at around 25% of the region’s total trade turnover.
