Kazakhstan and Canada have agreed to strengthen trade and investment cooperation, focusing on joint projects, critical minerals, nuclear energy, agriculture, aerospace and transport, Qazinform News Agency reports via the Kazakh Trade and Integration Ministry. The agreement was reached during a telephone conversation between Kazakhstan’s Minister of Trade and Integration Arman Shakkaliyev and Canada’s Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu.
More than 160 joint ventures with Canadian capital currently operate in Kazakhstan, although the sides noted that bilateral trade does not yet reflect its full potential. We have prepared a list of potential Kazakhstani export goods across 45 product categories totaling approximately 255 million US dollars.
We are ready to work together with the Canadian side to identify specific mechanisms for promoting these products to the Canadian market. At the same time, Kazakhstan can become an important platform for Canadian partners to enter the markets of China and other countries in the region, said Shakkaliyev.
The sides also discussed cooperation in nuclear energy, including the exchange of experience on small modular reactors and CANDU technology, as well as collaboration in critical minerals, mining and mineral processing. In agriculture, the sides considered the use of Canadian technologies to improve productivity and resource efficiency.
Regarding agriculture, Canadian companies in the field of agricultural technologies can help increase yields with less use of fertilizers and water, which will contribute to ensuring your food security, Sidhu said. The aerospace industry was also identified as a potential area for cooperation, with Canada expressing readiness to expand collaboration in firefighting aviation and the use of Canadian aircraft and technologies.
The sides highlighted the potential of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (Middle Corridor) to further diversify foreign trade and strengthen connectivity between Kazakhstan, Canada, China and other markets. The two countries also agreed to prepare a joint economic plan covering trade facilitation, investment and priority sectors, while continuing work on a possible Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (FIPA).
Shakkaliyev invited Sidhu to attend the Digital Bridge and Astana International Forum, while the Canadian side invited the Kazakhstani minister to continue talks in Canada, including at the PDAC mining conference. Earlier, Qazinform reported Kazakhstan and South Korea would develop the 2027-2030 Trade, Economic and Investment Cooperation Program.