Astana hosted the "Republic of Kazakhstan – United States of America" business roundtable.
The event served as a vital platform for discussing a new phase of Kazakh-American economic cooperation, driven by investment, technology exchange, and the development of joint manufacturing facilities.
The event brought together representatives from government agencies, business circles, international corporations, financial institutions, and the expert communities of both nations to explore prospects for expanding trade, economic, and investment cooperation.
Welcoming remarks were delivered by Serik Zhumangarin, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan; Yerzhan Kazykhan, Special Representative of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan for Relations with the USA; Magzum Mirzagaliev, Advisor to the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan; Deborah Robinson, Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in the Republic of Kazakhstan; Kanat Sharlapaev, Chairman of the Presidium of the NCE RK "Atameken", and Khush Choksy, Senior Vice President at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Kanat Sharlapaev noted that Kazakhstan and the United States have come a long way in developing bilateral economic cooperation. According to him, U.S. companies were the first strategic investors in independent Kazakhstan, laying the foundation for a long-term partnership.
"Today, more than 600 American companies operate successfully in Kazakhstan. Cumulative U.S. investment has exceeded $100 billion.," said Alibek Kuantyrov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, in his speech.
He further noted the activities of Chevron, ExxonMobil, PepsiCo, Mars, Cove Capital companies, and the Firebird-NVIDIA partnership.
"Kazakhstan has significant potential for developing high-value-added industries—from petrochemicals and metallurgy to mechanical engineering and agricultural processing. Today, we are creating new opportunities for localizing production and developing modern industrial clusters focused on both the domestic market and exports," emphasized A. Kuantyrov.
As part of the business program, representatives of government agencies and national companies of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as American multinational corporations, discussed the development of investment cooperation, energy, transport and logistics, digital transformation, infrastructure projects, the financial sector, and innovation.
Speakers at the business program included the Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and the heads of JSC NC KazMunayGas, KTZ, the Astana International Financial Center, Freedom Holding Corp., BI Group, and other leading organizations.
A key outcome of the event was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on Strategic Partnership between the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs of the Republic of Kazakhstan "Atameken" and the U.S.-Kazakhstan Business Council of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The document aims to further enhance direct engagement between the business communities of both countries, facilitate joint investment projects, and strengthen institutional cooperation.
In addition, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan Alibek Kuantyrov met with a delegation from the US Trade Mission.
"Twenty-five years ago, approximately 75% of foreign direct investment went to the oil, gas, and metallurgy sectors. Today, its share is only about 35%. This speaks to the profound diversification of the economy," emphasized A. Kuantyrov.
The Deputy Minister noted that some of the best examples of high-value-added investments are projects implemented jointly with American companies.
During the meeting, the participants discussed various issues related to the development of bilateral relations, particularly in the areas of Kazakhstan's investment climate and trade and economic partnerships between the countries.
