Regional authorities blamed for loss of promising investment projects

ASTANA. KAZINFORM – President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev blamed regional authorities for losing foreign investors as Kazakhstan realized only 15% of investment projects in the outgoing year, Kazinform correspondent reports.

President Tokayev had some harsh words to say to governors of regions at the extended session of the Kazakh Government on Monday.

He said that despite a pool of promising investment projects had been formed at his instruction, in 2022 the country managed to implement only 43 out of 284 planned ones, that is 15%. Those 15% mean dozens of thousands of potential workplaces have not been created and Kazakhstan’s economy has not benefited from billions of tenge those projects would bring.

Although the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to the President, does its best to spark the interest of foreign investors and bring them to Kazakhstan, investment projects come to a halt in the regions as the local authorities seem to be unable to administrate them.

The Head of State reminded that regional authorities are the ones responsible for investment projects in the regions and charged Prime Minsiter Alikhan Smailov to discuss the problem at the upcoming session of the Economic Policy Council.