There is a real crisis looming in Kazakhstan, much stronger than in 2007-2009, President Nursultan Nazarbayev said, instructing his government to work out a plan of anti-crisis work. The president himself is going on a tour to various countries of the world "in order to attract investment," and to form a "security ring" around Kazakhstan.
Discussing the economic situation with the prime minister Karim Masimov, Nazarbayev noted that the republic's economy is operating in a difficult mode. "Due to the decline in energy prices, budget revenues have decreased by 40%. In addition, prices for other basic export goods, including ferrous and non-ferrous metals and coal, have also gone down. Meanwhile, agriculture provides a small increase but industrial enterprises have reduced production," Elbasy [the leader of the nation – the title of President Nursultan Nazarbayev] said. He believes that the population of Kazakhstan "must know the current situation in the country, i.e. about "profit shrinkage, reduction of income and possible job cuts." "There is a real crisis coming, much stronger than in 2007-2009. In this regard, I charge the government to analyze and work out a plan of anti-crisis work, determine the necessary measures and bring them to the population," Nazarbayev said. He referred to conclusions "made after talks in the United States, China and with the leadership of Russia."
The head of Kazakhstan hopes to keep things afloat through privatization, investment and conversion of certain manufacturers. His special hopes are associated with increased activity of the EEU and cooperation with the EU. As the Chairman of the Senate of the Kazakh Parliament, Kassym-Zhomart Tokayev, told Interfax-Kazakhstan, "today all the EEU states are experiencing difficulties associated with the economic crisis." "The decline in commodity prices, currency devaluation, the fall of stock markets – all this requires a quick and competent response. Recently, the president instructed the government to work out an anti-crisis plan. But any crisis is not only an economic recession with negative consequences for society, but also an opportunity to make structural transformations. We all have to learn lessons from this crisis, to strengthen our ability to take timely and effective measures to protect our economies from disasters and our citizens from difficulties and turmoil," Tokayev said. According to him, "the EEU with the European Union is the largest trading partner for Kazakhstan, it is followed by Russia and China, so we are interested in cooperation with the European Union on the understanding that it would be beneficial both to Kazakhstan and all our partners in the EEU."
As for the Eurasian integration, Tokayev said: "We must not forget its fundamental principles: free movement of goods, capital, labor, creation of joint ventures, deepening of human contacts." "The success of this mega-project is entirely dependent on how productive we will work on its implementation, both at the national level and within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Commission. And there is a lot of work, because we passed only the initial stage of the EEU," the Senate speaker stressed.
According to Tokayev, a new breakthrough in the development of Kazakhstan against the background of serious shocks in world economy and politics will be provided by the president's 'National Plan – 100 Steps'. "The president made a similar large-scale modernization of the legislation of the country in the mid-1990s, for a short time he issued a package of decrees, having the force of law, to accelerate market reforms. This is the time when the economy was being liberalized, freedom and support for entrepreneurship were implemented, tge banking system was being developed, large foreign capital was being attracted," the head of the Kazakh senate reminded. Today, according to him, the priorities of the head of state are to increase the share of the middle class, balance regional development, eradicate corruption, create jobs and strengthen national unity. "It's impossible to guarantee the strong leadership of our country in the reforms without legislative support. The Parliament of Kazakhstan in close cooperation with the government copes with this huge task. The work on the National Plan of '100 Steps' has been implemented for more than six months already, we plan to complete the legislative stage by the first half of November," Tokayev summed up.
The editor-in-chief of Mir Yevrazii magazine, Eduard Poletayev, told Vestnik Kavkaza that now all the EEU countries are being tested. And it's not about some visible manifestation or devaluation, which took place everywhere in different ways, somewhere smoothly, somewhere roughly, somewhere it did not happen, for example in Armenia. "All countries depend on each other and it doesn't matter whether they are EEU members or not. Anyway, old national and economic relations still remain, for example, transit through Russia, which is required by many countries. The EEU should promote greater unity of our countries, its protectionist association, which must pull up our economies, to increase the turnover with each other, and of course one's hopes are and will be centered on it, another thing is that it doesn't offer single-step recipes, and, according to the plan of action, a lot of things are stretched into the long term. For example, a single market of oil and gas will be created only in 10 years, the Customs Code hasn't been adopted yet, that is, of course we shouldn't hope that the EEU will solve all the problems right away," Poletayev believes.
According to the actions of the authorities, both political and ideological, this situation was foreseen in Kazakhstan. One of the lifebuoys will be the implementation of the program of Nurly Jol – the development of the transit potential of the country, development of small and medium-sized businesses. The second variant is associated with the policy of greater loyalty to foreign investors. It has been operating for more than a year. For example, one-sided cancellation of visas for 19 countries, which are investors in Kazakhstan, other work with international partners, travels of the Kazakh president to various countries, when the President's delegation includes interested people. The policy of greater openness has been going for 1.5 to 2 years, since the announcement of the first stage of the program of forced industrial-innovative development, when it became clear that Kazakhstan is trying to get off the raw needle and develop the processing industry.
The head of state, as Kazakh Presidential Press Secretary Dauren Abayev said, "is seriously intensifying foreign policy." "The main objectives pursued by Kazakhstan are to attract investment to our country and to form a security ring around Kazakhstan," Abayev said. In the next few days the president will visit Qatar, where he will discuss the prospects of participation of the Qatari Investment Fund in Kazakh infrastructure projects.
On October 27 Nazarbayev will meet with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to discuss the issues of energy and green technologies. At the beginning of November US Secretary of State John Kerry will arrive in Astana. After that, Nazarbayev will leave for an official visit to the UK, and then to France. "We are intensifying both the economic component and security issues, as the overall situation in the region is not stable," Dauren Abayev noted.
