Economic week of Kyrgyzstan July 22 – 27, 2019

Food security. Kyrgyzstan’s food security is provided by 75%.
Deputy chairman of the State Material Reserves Fund of the Kyrgyz Republic Rustam Karakulov told that by the end of the year, the food security will be provided up to 100%.
He added that this year the State Material Reserves plans to purchase 40 thousand tons of grain. Today, 11 thousand tons of grain have been purchased from Kazakhstan, and 15 thousand tons are planned to be bought from domestic farmers.
Water in resort town. The EBRD, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Union (EU) provided EUR 5.1 million to improve water supply system and wastewater services in Cholpon-Ata resort town.
The financing will be used to replace old water pipes, some of which installed over 60 years ago. It will help reduce the risk of water borne diseases and enable better control of water quality.
Specialised equipment, includingtwo backhoe loaders, a pickup truck and a mobile workshop with a total cost of EUR 271,604 ,was handed over in a ceremony which was attended by the mayor of Cholpon Ata, Talant Sarbagyshev,the municipal water company director, Makhmud Turdakunov, the EU Ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic, Eduard Auer and the EBRD Regional Head for Central Asia, Neil McKain.
The new equipment will help the water company to launch water infrastructure improvements in the town. The investment will improve access to clean water, reduce water losses, improve resilience to climate change and optimise Cholpon Ata Water Company’s operating costs.
Contradictions of customs. The State Customs Service of the Kyrgyz Republic announced its response to the accusations of the Kazakh side that "gray imports" from China come through Kyrgyzstan. Colleagues from a neighboring country said that smugglers import goods into Kyrgyzstan using unequipped checkpoints.
A statement released by the press service of the State Customs Service of the Kyrgyz Republic states: "Recently, a number of media outlets reported that Kazakhstan accuses Kyrgyzstan of smuggling gray imports from China with reference to the State Revenue Committee of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
However, according to mirror statistics, there is a large discrepancy in the data on the export of China’s goods to Kazakhstan and the import of Kazakhstan’s goods from China, which indicates the existence of this problem in Kazakhstan.
So, in 2015, the discrepancy between data on the export of goods from China to Kazakhstan and the import of goods from Kazakhstan to Kazakhstan amounted to USD 3.3 billion and in 2018 it increased to USD 6 billion, that is, it almost doubled.
Thus, despite the equipped checkpoints in Kazakhstan, this problem is only aggravated.
Investment protection. This week, on July 22-25, 2019, negotiations were held at the Ministry of Economy of the Kyrgyz Republic to discuss the draft Agreement between the governments of Kyrgyzstan and Hungary on the promotion and mutual protection of investments.
During the talks, the parties reached a full understanding on the individual norms, taking into account the national interests of both countries.
A bilateral investment agreement between the governments of the two countries provides conditions for encouraging and protecting investments between the two countries.
The achieved results will lay the foundation for the further deepening of mutually beneficial cooperation for the business of the two countries and helps to strengthen trade and economic ties between the countries in order to stimulate private investments.
State debt payment. As of May, 31, 2019, Kyrgyzstan's public debt was USD 4 billion 453.86 million, Marlen Amandykov, the Director of the Central Treasury of the Finance Ministry told during the press conference at Kabar News Agency.
The external debt amounts to 84.9% ( USD 3.783 billion), the internal debt -15.1% ( USD 670.9 million).
"In January-June 2019, KGS 12 billion 684.5 million was allocated from the national budget to repay the state debt obligations. Of these, KGS 6 billion 718 million was allocated for the external debt, KGS 5 billion 966.5 million for domestic debt," said Amandykov.
Currently, the fixed exchange rate of 1 USD is 69.72 soms.
Teachers and their salary. Teachers' salaries will be increased in Kyrgyzstan by Sept. 1.
Director of the Central Treasury of the Ministry of Finance of the Kyrgyz Republic Amandykov said that, while calculations are being made. "To increase the salaries of teachers and doctors, several options are being considered - by 20, 30 or 40%," said Amandykov.
Regional imbalance. This week it is officially said that the regions of Kyrgyzstan are developing unevenly.
Prime Minister of the Kyrgyz Republic Mukhammedkalyi Abylgaziev at a meeting of the Government of Kyrgyzstan stated that "some regions are moving ahead, while in others, problems still cannot be solved".
"There is the imbalance in the development of regions. For two years in a row, the president has been announcing regional development in the country. This was the impetus for the systematization of the work of each of us. And the last two years really began to change. We must understand one thing. The development of the regions is a complex and hard work that combines all directions," he said.
The prime minister noted that the main goal of regional development is:
- increase production;
- population income growth;
- creation of additional jobs;
- improving the quality of life of the population.
Экономический рост обеспечен всеми секторами экономики, в том числе: в сельском хозяйстве объемы реально возросли на 1,7%; в промышленности – на 20,5%; в строительстве – на 5,9%; в сфере услуг – на 1,4%. Основной вклад в рост ВВП внес промышленный сектор, вклад которого в ВВП составил 4,1 п.п., с темпом реального прироста в 20,5%, в основном за счет роста выработки металла на предприятиях по разработке месторождения "Кумтор".
Main factors. This week, during the meeting of the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic, the results of the country's socio-economic development for the first half of 2019 were reviewed.
Minister of Economy of the Kyrgyz Republic Sanzhar Mukanbetov, the real growth rate of the republic’s GDP over six months amounted to 106.4%, while excluding enterprises developing the Kumtor field, GDP in real terms increased by 2.1%.
Economic growth is ensured by all sectors of the economy, including: in agriculture, the volume actually increased by 1.7%; in industry - by 20.5%; in construction - by 5.9%; in the service sector - by 1.4%. The main contribution to GDP growth was made by the industrial sector, whose contribution to GDP was 4.1 percentage points, with a real growth rate of 20.5%, mainly due to the growth of metal production at enterprises developing the Kumtor deposit.
In industry, the results for January-June 2019 as a whole are characterized by positive dynamics of growth rates. Industrial enterprises produced products in the amount of KGS 127.5 billion, the physical volume index compared to the corresponding period of 2018 was 119.7%.
The foreign trade turnover of the Kyrgyz Republic amounted to USD 2 billion 693.2 million and decreased by 2.6% compared to the same period of 2018, including exports amounted to USD 727.6 million and increased by 3.7%, import - 1 billion 965.6 million dollars (a decrease of 4.7%). In the structure of turnover, exports accounted for 27%, imports - 73%. Excluding gold, exports of goods decreased by 15.0% to $ 415.2 million.
New workplaces. The government announced this week that in the first half of the year 108 enterprises were opened in Kyrgyzstan and 25 thousand jobs were created.
Prime Minister of the Kyrgyz Republic Mukhammedkalyi Abylgaziev at a government meeting noted that Kyrgyzstan’s GDP has grown by 6.4% since the beginning of the year.
"But I must say that here the lion’s share comes from Kumtor. We need to reduce this share and develop other industries," he said.
The prime minister added that the main task of the government is to create jobs.
"In the near future, McMalzoloto will work." The Kichi Chaarat field is also being opened, where USD 140 million is invested and 400 jobs will be created," he said.
Abylgaziev noted that when Jeruy starts working, thousands of jobs will be created there with a salary of at least USD 500.
"The reserves at this field will last for 25 years. This will be our main achievement," the premier added.
Kabar News Agency