Kazakhstan, Türkiye Sign $2 Billion Investment Deal in Agriculture
ASTANA: Kazakhstan and Türkiye have sealed a cooperation deal worth $2 Billion Investment Agreements in Agriculture sectors.
The agreement was signed during the visit of Kazakh Minister of Agriculture Aidarbek Saparov, accompanied by the Kazakh delegation included companies that raised, fattened, and slaughtered livestock meat processing plants, to Turkiye.
On August 11, Kazakh Agriculture Minister Aidarbek Saparov held talks with leaders of eight Turkish businesses interested in developing projects in Kazakhstan to process grain and legumes, produce cattle hides, produce ice cream, and localize the production of agricultural equipment.
According to Kazakh Agriculture Ministry’s reports, Kazakh Minister of Agriculture Aidarbek Saparov signed documents worth $2 billion in the field of investment in the agro-industrial complex and trade in agricultural products with Turkish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry İbrahim Yumaklı.
During his meeting with Turkish counterpart, Saparov highlighted the stable development of Kazakh-Turkish agricultural relations, noting a 13% increase in the trade turnover of agricultural products in 2023. Kazakhstan traditionally supplies crop products to Türkiye, and domestic agricultural producers are now ready to export meat products following the lifting of restrictions on livestock products in June.
Saparov thanked Yumaklı for his efforts to lift the restrictions and stressed the need to expedite the inspection process by the Turkish veterinary service for Kazakh enterprises. He also emphasized the significance of increasing exports of grain and oilseed crops to Türkiye, particularly in light of an expected good harvest.
In addition to trade agreements, the visit also resulted in the signing of three cooperation documents in agricultural science between Kazakhstan’s National Agrarian Scientific and Educational Center and Türkiye’s General Directorate of Agricultural Research and Policies, Sivas University of Science and Technology, and the Turkish Beekeepers Association.
Kazakhstan has successfully implemented six investment projects with Turkish investors and plans to implement ten more, totaling $553 million. These projects include the construction of greenhouse complexes, plants for deep processing of wheat and beans, vegetable storage facilities, and others.
“Hide processing is an extremely pressing topic for Kazakhstan, today 17% of the 3.5 million hides produced are processed and exported, the rest is of no use to anyone. Therefore, we are focused on the speedy implementation of the gelatin production project,” said Saparov.
According to Saparov, Kazakhstan has created attractive conditions for investors, including rules for reimbursement of investment costs, tax incentives and other instruments. Turkish businessmen emphasized the importance of subsidizing logistics to expand the geography of agricultural exports.
