Fast-paced reforms lead to improvements in ease of doing business across Kazakhstan

AKIPRESS.COM - Regions of Kazakhstan have made doing business easier by improving business regulation over the past two years, says the World Bank in a new report released today. According to the subnational Doing Business in Kazakhstan 2019 report, the pace of reform has been fast across Kazakhstan. Lower performing regions cut the gap with Almaty city, the top performer, by half on getting electricity and dealing with construction permits. These reforms are reducing red tape for entrepreneurs and are moving the whole country toward global good practices in business regulation. Good practices found throughout the individual regions pave the way for reform-minded policy makers to improve further by replicating best practices in other locations.
The government of Kazakhstan is adopting unprecedented system-wide reforms aimed at improving the business climate, and reducing administrative barriers and business costs As a result, today Kazakhstan is among the top 30 countries in the World Bank's Doing Business ranking. For further dynamic development of entrepreneurship in the country, the World Bank's assessment of whether an economy has good rules and processes at the local level will help us significantly improve the local business climate," said Arman Dzhumabekov, First Vice-Minister of National Economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
Across the areas measured, Almaty city scores highest, leading on three indicators - getting electricity, registering property and dealing with construction permits. Nur-Sultan ranks first on starting a business, owing to the availability of electronic processes and uptake in the use of the E-Government system. East Kazakhstan and Pavlodar also share the top score with Almaty city on registering property. These regions keep land registry titles in digital format. No location does equally well across all areas measured, but each location ranks in the top half on at least one indicator. This leaves room for all regions to learn from each other.
The annual Doing Business report measures 190 economies globally, with Almaty city representing Kazakhstan as its largest business city. The subnational Doing Business in Kazakhstan reports aim to gain a broader understanding of the regulatory environment for businesses across the country. Tools like Doing Business in Kazakhstan 2019 help identify the implementation gaps at the point of service in the regions, to inform the policy agenda.