Kazakhstan to allocate $70 mln to finance creation of Turkic investment fund

ASTANA. Sept 20 (Interfax) - The Majilis, the lower chamber of the Kazakh parliament, on Wednesday approved the Law on the Ratification of the Agreement on the Creation of a Turkic Investment Fund, Interfax reports.

"As the global political situation is currently unstable, Kazakhstan seeks diversification in its external relations, which is one of our main goals today. To this end, we are actively working [with other parties] using various multilateral platforms, including the Organization of Turkic States. It is an objective of the countries participating in the Organization of Turkic States to create a favorable environment for investments into advanced sectors of the economy, and to stimulate the emergence and development of these sectors. One of our main priorities has become the creation of a Turkic Investment Fund," Kazakh Minister of National Economy Alibek Kuantyrov said at a Wednesday meeting of the Majilis.

It was in fact Azerbaijan that initiated the creation of the Fund, he added.

During an informal summit of the Organization of Turkic States on March 31, 2021, the Kazakh President, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, noted the need to accelerate work on the creation of the fund, and on March 16, 2023, an agreement on the fund's creation was signed as part of the summit of the Council of Heads of State of the Organization.

The Turkic Investment Fund is the first joint financial institution for the economic integration of the Turkic world, Kuantyrov said.

The conclusion on the draft law states that the fund has the status of an international financial organization, which will represent a regional investment mechanism with a charter capital of $500 million formed through the issue of shares. Of all the shares to be floated, as much as $350 million will be paid by the countries participating in the Organization of Turkic States or $70 million by each participating state, and $150 million worth of shares will be offered outside the Organization.

"Thus, the agreement provides for the allocation of funds from the republican budget in the amount of 31.2186 billion tenge or $70 million for the next 4 years," the text of the conclusion says.

The fund will help develop intraregional trade, finance SME projects, green economy projects, as well as projects in industry, infrastructure, transport, agriculture, infocommunication technologies and tourism.

According to a note to the Agreement, the Turkic Investment Fund will have a status of an international financial organization The Agreement provides for the allocation of 31.219 billion tenge or $70 million from the government budget of Kazakhstan in the next four years, the note reads.

The Fund is aimed at supporting the development of intra-regional trade and financing SME projects, as well as green economy, industrial, infrastructure, transport, agricultural, tourism, and information and communication projects.