The Foreign Trade Chamber of Kazakhstan participated in the Kazakhstan-France Business Forum

On 28 May 2005, Astana hosted the Kazakhstan-French Business Forum with the participation of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Olzhas Bektenov, and the Minister-Delegate for Foreign Trade and French Citizens Abroad of the French Republic, Laurent Saint-Martin.

The Forum has become an important platform for discussing prospects for expanding partnership and attracting French investment in key sectors of Kazakhstan's economy, including energy, agro-industry, healthcare, transport infrastructure and sustainable urban development.

Assan Zhakishev, Member of the Board - Chief of Staff, and Diana Zhakutova, Director of the International Cooperation Department, attended the forum on behalf of the Chamber of International Commerce of Kazakhstan. During the event, bilateral meetings were held in B2B and B2G formats, where specific initiatives and prospects for practical co-operation between Kazakhstani business, French companies and representatives of government agencies were discussed. 

Also, we note that during the plenary session, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan Alibek Kuantyrov emphasised the positive dynamics of investment and trade and economic cooperation between Kazakhstan and France: ‘France is one of Kazakhstan's key partners in the European Union both politically and economically. More than 170 companies operate in our country with the participation of French capital, including such well-known brands as TotalEnergies, Orano, Alstom, Vicat, Danone, Air Liquide and others. France is consistently among the top ten largest trading partners of Kazakhstan and ranks first among EU countries in terms of investment - in recent years this figure has exceeded $17 billion. Last year alone, six joint projects worth about $300 million were implemented, and more than 20 more initiatives are in the works. We highly appreciate the contribution of French business to the development of Kazakhstan's economy and are ready to continue to create the most favourable conditions for investors’.

In turn, the French speakers expressed a high interest in expanding their presence in the Kazakh market and emphasised their readiness to implement joint projects in priority sectors. Special attention was paid to sustainable development, localisation of production, technology transfer and strengthening business ties between companies of the two countries.