On July 3, Arman Shakkaliyev, Minister of Trade and Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan, visited Shymkent as part of a working visit, where he inspected the implementation of investment projects, the operation of retail facilities, and modernized markets.

During his visit, the minister toured the Alsera.kz greenhouse complex, built with the participation of Turkish investors. The project cost $650 million. The company annually grows over 155,000 tons of tomatoes across six varieties. Its products are sold domestically and exported to Russia and Kyrgyzstan. The minister emphasized that meeting domestic market demand remains the company's priority.

The next stop on the working visit was the Aimar-Kus poultry farm, which produces 100 million chicken eggs annually and employs 25 people. As part of the third phase of the project, the company plans to increase production to over 300 million eggs annually. The farm's products are currently available in major retail chains in Shymkent and Astana. The company's management discussed prospects for entering export markets with the minister. Following the expansion of production capacity, the Ministry of Trade and Integration will provide the necessary export support.

Arman Shakkaliev also visited the Alash and Ayna markets, which were modernized in 2023–2024 in accordance with the Roadmap for the Modernization of Trade Markets. Approximately 1,800 retail outlets operate at the Alash market, while 626 small businesses operate at the Ayna market.

The minister instructed the market management and local executive authorities to ensure the transparency of trade processes and strengthen oversight of compliance with fire safety and sanitary standards.

"Trade must be open and fair. This particularly applies to compliance with the maximum trade markup on socially important food products. The Ministry of Trade and Integration has strengthened state oversight in this area, as this directly impacts the cost of goods for the population. Furthermore, we are consistently reducing the number of intermediaries in the supply chain and eliminating unproductive participants. "Since the beginning of the year, 150 unproductive intermediaries have been eliminated from supply chains across the country, 47 of which are in Shymkent," noted Arman Shakkaliyev.

The minister also noted the positive dynamics of Shymkent's retail sector. Investments in the retail sector totaled almost 30 billion tenge in the first five months of this year.

During his visit, the minister toured the new Dala Mall shopping and entertainment center, built with private investment. The 5-hectare complex opened this year and includes not only entertainment facilities but also modern grocery supermarkets.

"Retail formats change annually. Despite the active development of e-commerce, traditional retail remains significant. Therefore, it is important to adapt retail infrastructure to modern requirements. Convenient retail facilities with parking, comfortable shopping conditions, and modern payment systems will always be in demand. Increasing the share of modern retail formats remains one of the ministry's priorities," the minister emphasized.

Shymkent ranks fifth among Kazakhstan's regions in terms of its share of the country's total trade volume. Since the beginning of the year, the city has held 24 meetings of the regional commission. These meetings revealed 164 instances of unproductive intermediaries and exceeding the maximum trade markup on socially important food products. Administrative charges were filed for 117 violations, and 47 unproductive intermediaries were terminated.

Shymkent ranks third among Kazakhstan's regions in terms of the number of unproductive intermediaries identified. Entrepreneurs have been fined over 2 million tenge for exceeding the permissible trade markup.

Source : https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/mti/press/news/details/1253356?lang=ru