On 12 December 2024, a meeting was held in Astana under the chairmanship of Aizhan Bizhanova, First Vice Minister of Trade and Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan, to take stock and plan next steps for the Sustainable Infrastructure in Asia (SIPA) programme in Kazakhstan. The event confirmed the successful cooperation between Kazakhstan and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in the field of sustainable development.

The discussion was attended by Jürgen Keinhorst and Yvonne Lindenlaub, representatives of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV) for Central Asia; Pelin Atamer, SIPA Programme Manager, and Matthew Griffiths, Senior Programme Manager (Nexus) from the OECD; and Nurlan Kulbatyrov, First Deputy Director General of the Trade Policy Development Centre ‘QazTrade’ JSC

In her speech, First Vice-Minister AizhanBizhanova noted that the achieved results of the SIPA programme became possible thanks to the support of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany, stressing its commitment to the principles of sustainable development. She expressed gratitude to the OECD for the effective coordination of the SIPA project and highlighted the active participation of the Ministry of Trade and Integration in initiatives aimed at decarbonising trade, diversifying exports and integrating Kazakh enterprises into sustainable and low-carbon global value chains.

Recently, there has been a positive trend in the foreign trade balance between Kazakhstan and the European Union. At the end of last year, trade turnover reached $41.5 billion, an increase of 3.5 per cent. And this year for 10 months the growth rate was already 21% (41.2 billion). Moreover, it is pleasing that exports of both raw and non-raw materials are growing. Half of the 15 main trading partners are EU countries. These are Italy, Germany, France, the Netherlands, etc.

Our trade turnover with Germany has increased significantly. In terms of processed goods, Germany is among the top 5 of our main trading partners.

Special attention was paid to the development of the Middle Corridor, which offers significant prospects for strengthening economic ties with European partners. The partnership with the Federal Republic of Germany in the development of critical raw materials, initiated during the Federal Chancellor's visit to Kazakhstan in September, was recognized as an important step forward.

The meeting also addressed the implementation of the European Union's Border Carbon Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which presents both a challenge and an opportunity for Kazakhstan's key export industries, including steel and aluminum. Kazakhstan has reaffirmed its commitment to addressing this challenge and its intention to use it to transition the economy to a sustainable development path consistent with climate goals.

The Ministry of Trade and Integration will continue active outreach to exporters, especially in the context of the implementation of the Border Adjustment Carbon Mechanism, but this must be balanced, taking into account economic feasibility.

And we are waiting for proposals from Western partners on preferential lending or other incentive programs for our industrial groups, transitioning to green technologies.

First Vice-Minister Aizhan Bizhanova expressed gratitude to the OECD for the guide on best practices and international experience for industrial exporters developed jointly with QazTrade JSC.

She also noted the participation of the OECD and SIPA in the COP29 side event in Baku on decarbonization of global value chains, organized by the Ministry of Trade and Integration together with QazTrade JSC, and appreciated the OECD's support in this direction.

Following the meeting, the parties agreed to continue close cooperation to achieve common goals in the field of sustainable development and decarbonization of the economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Background: The Sustainable Infrastructure in Asia (SIPA) program aims to support countries in Central and Southeast Asia in securing investments in energy, transport and industrial infrastructure that are consistent with the Paris Agreement goals and the Sustainable Development Goals.