KAZAKHSTAN AND JAPAN: NEW PROSPECTS FOR COOPERATION
Kazakhstan-Japanese business-forum entitled «Regions of Kazakhstan: prospects for Japanese investments» has been launched in Tokyo. The forum is taking place under the auspices of the Ministry for Investment and Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan and Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan to Japan. The Kazakhstan delegation is headed by the Vice-Minister for Investment and Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan Erlan Khairov. Also the Forum is attended by representatives of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Ministry for Investment and Development, regional akimats, and also Kazakhstan businessmen.
Participants of the Forum discuss real examples of achievements in the Kazakhstan-Japanese business relationships, investment opportunities in Kazakhstan regions, issues of investment policy of Kazakhstan and prospects for development of economic relations with Japan.
The Vice-Minister for Investment and Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan Erlan Khairov in his speech said that Japan is one of the key strategic partners for Kazakhstan in the East Asia. Relations between the countries are strategic, friendly and confidential.
“We have Intergovernmental Commission for Trade and Economic Cooperation, as well as Business Council. An agreement on promotion and mutual protection of investments has been in force since 2015. In Kazakhstan, we have also introduced a visa-free regime for Japanese citizens and created a regulatory and legal framework to start direct flights between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the cities of Tokyo and Osaka. These measures help to promote business contacts and trade, economic and social ties between our countries. Japan is one of the largest investors in Kazakhstan. Over the past 10 years, the inflow of Japanese direct investment amounted to US $5.5 billion”, Erlan Khairov said.
He also said that during the past 10 years the inflow of direct foreign investment into Kazakhstan amounted to US $250 billion, owing to purposeful work towards improving the investment climate.
At the same time, the Vice-Minister said that this year Kazakhstan has established “National Company “Kazakh Invest” JSC that provides a full range of services to support investment projects from the initial idea up to their implementation at the so-called “single window” principle and also acts as a single coordination center.
Deputy Chairman of the Board of Kazakh Invest Zhandos Nurlanov delivering a presentation “New approach to attracting foreign investors” emphasized: «Japan, undoubtedly, is one of the most technologically developed nations in the world. Kazakhstan is interested in cooperation with Japanese companies, attracting investment, and introducing the latest technological achievements into the country’s economy. I hope that today's business-forum will give new impetus to direct investment interaction of Japanese companies with regions of Kazakhstan».
At the Forum the Japanese side is represented by political and public figures, diplomats, experts, as well as heads of more than 150 large Japanese companies, such as Marubeni Corp, METI, NEC, JOGMEC, Tokyo Rope, NYK Group, JETRO, etc. The Japanese companies which are taking part in the Forum represent the following branches of the economy: automobile construction, aircraft, astronautics, electronics, chemical industry, finance, real estate, forwarding and cargo transportations, food production, healthcare, etc.
Besides, during the Forum, representatives of the Kazakhstan side hold a number of B2B meetings with companies and organizations such as NH Parking specializing in multi-story parking, one of the largest banks in Japan SMBC, Sojitz trading corporation, Panasonic, Fujifilm, etc. and also with representatives of some other business structures.
The Kazakhstan delegation is scheduling to visit the plant for steel pipe production Haneda Pipe Works Co., corporations of Mitsubishi Materials, the world's largest telecommunication corporation NEC, as well as such known companies as Sumitomo, Itochu, Mitsui.
Special attention is paid to the cooperation of the countries in the mining and metallurgical complex development. And it is planned to hold a separate forum on this topic, as well as a seminar with the participation of MMC companies in the Japanese National Corporation for Oil, Gas and Metals JOGMEC.
Following the forum, the sides are expected to sign a number of documents on cooperation of two countries, including a memorandum of mutual understanding between the regional akimats and Tokyo Rope and others.
For information:
From 2005 up to the first half of 2016, the gross inflow of Japanese direct investment to Kazakhstan totaled US $5.1 billion. As of October 1, 2016, there were 53 representative offices with Japanese participation in Kazakhstan. In 2015, the trade turnover between the two countries amounted to US $1.4 billion.
http://mid.gov.kz/ru/news/kazahstan-i-yaponiya-novye-perspektivy-sotrudnichestva