President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Thursday met with Odile Renaud-Basso, President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Qazinform News Agency correspondent reports. During the meeting, held on the sidelines of the 38th plenary session of the Foreign Investors’ Council, the two discussed the prospects for cooperation between Kazakhstan and the international financial institution in the coming years.
President Tokayev expressed his appreciation to the EBRD leadership for its contribution to Kazakhstan's economic development. We share a strategic partnership. Kazakhstan is one of the Bank's key partner countries, and this cooperation is fully aligned with our long-term policy objectives.
Our partnership has developed successfully over many years, said Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. It was noted that over the past 30 years, the EBRD has invested more than 11 billion euros in Kazakhstan through 354 projects, making the country one of the Bank's largest partners in the region.
At present, the EBRD's investment portfolio in Kazakhstan includes 131 projects with a total value of more than 3.1 billion euros. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev welcomed the signing of the Framework Partnership Agreement between the Government of Kazakhstan and the EBRD, aimed at expanding cooperation to support the country's sustainable development.
President Tokayev stated that Kazakhstan is currently implementing an ambitious reform agenda designed to build a more diversified, competitive, and technologically advanced economy. For her part, Odile Renaud-Basso praised Kazakhstan's favorable investment climate and the structural economic reforms that are creating a solid foundation for achieving the country's long-term strategic objectives.
Kazakhstan is one of the EBRD's most important countries of operation. This year, we are witnessing a very high level of investment activity. Agreements have already been signed for projects worth more than 1 billion US dollars. Taking into account the projects currently under preparation, we expect our total investment volume this year to reach 1.3 billion US dollars.
This would represent the highest annual level of investment in the history of our operations in Kazakhstan, the EBRD President said. Odile Renaud-Basso also reaffirmed the Bank's commitment to continuing its support for Kazakhstan in the development of infrastructure, transport connectivity, irrigation, and the energy sector.
The EBRD intends to place significant emphasis on supporting the private sector, promoting the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and financing investment projects. One of its priority areas will be investment in critical raw materials.