Astana hosted the Pre-Congress and the XII Congress of NCE RK "Atameken", which gathered more than 360 delegates from all over the country and representatives of about 180 business associations.
The event was attended by Vice Minister of Agriculture Azat Sultanov, representatives of leading development institutions, and entrepreneurs. The participants discussed the most pressing problems of Kazakhstani business.
Azat Sultanov spoke about the measures of state support for the agricultural sector and the development of the agro-industrial complex.
Farmers managed to harvest 26.6 million tons of grain with an average yield of 16 kg/ha.
A record harvest of sugar beet is expected, more than 1.2 million tons. The diversification of acreage in favor of highly profitable crops has been successfully carried out, more than 1.2 million tons of mineral fertilizers have been introduced, the share of elite seeds has been increased from 7.1% to 9.5%, and the level of renewal of agricultural machinery from 4.5% to 5.5%.
A key success factor was a significant increase in funding for spring field and harvesting operations - more than three times compared to 2023. This was made possible by combining commercial funds and financial instruments, as well as providing farmers with preferential loans at 5% per annum through various channels, including SEC, ACC and STB. The introduced guarantee of up to 85% of the loan amount allowed to expand access to financing for farmers with insufficient collateral. Within the framework of the program "Preferential leasing", 120 billion tenge was allocated for the purchase of agricultural machinery of domestic production.
"Next year, the volume of concessional financing of agriculture is planned to increase to 900 billion tenge, of which the first 100 billion tenge will be available in December this year. In order to achieve the target of updating agricultural machinery to 8-10% per year, it is planned to allocate at least 200 billion tenge for leasing agricultural machinery. As part of the optimization of state support mechanisms, it is planned to switch from subsidizing loan interest rates to subsidizing lenders, manufacturers of machinery and fertilizers, as well as irrigation water suppliers. This will increase transparency and reduce corruption risks," the Vice Minister said.
Special attention is paid to the introduction of water-saving technologies and an increase in the share of processed products in the agro-industrial complex to 70%.
In this regard, the Government has adopted a comprehensive plan for the development of agricultural processing until 2028. 372 billion tenge will be allocated to the industry over 5 years.
During the Pre-Congress, questions were raised regarding the most pressing issues of concern to entrepreneurs in various industries and regions. At the event, five priority measures were proposed to improve the business climate in Kazakhstan. These include simplifying tax legislation, launching a program to support SMEs, increasing transparency in public procurement, active interaction between the state and business, as well as investments in education.

Source : https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/moa/press/news/details/879602