Foreword

In 2017 Kazakhstan was invited by the OECD to become Adherent to the OECD Declaration on International Investment and Multinational Enterprises. This adherence bears witness to the determination that Kazakhstan holds towards its integration into the world economy and promoting development through responsible business practices.

As an adherent to the Declaration, Kazakhstan commits to providing national treatment to foreign investors and promoting and enabling responsible business conduct. In turn, it benefits from similar assurance from other adherents to treat Kazakh investors abroad fairly and to encourage their multinational enterprises operating in Kazakhstan to contribute to economic, social and environmental progress. In accordance with the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, an integral part of the Declaration, Kazakhstan has committed to establish a National Contact Point charged with promoting responsible business principles and practices embodied in the Guidelines, handling related inquiries in the national context and providing a mediation and conciliation platform for resolving practical issues that may arise.

The Investment Policy Review of Kazakhstan took place under the aegis of the OECD Investment Committee and as part of the OECD-Kazakhstan Country Programme. This publication draws on the report supporting the examination by the Investment Committee of Kazakhstan’s application for adherence to the Declaration. The examination of Kazakhstan’s investment policies took place in October 2016 at the OECD in Paris in the presence of a delegation from Kazakhstan led by Mr. Yerlan Khairov, Vice-Minister for Investments and Development.

The Review has been prepared under the supervision of Stephen Thomsen, Head of Investment Policy Reviews, by a team led by Frédéric Wehrlé and comprised of Tihana Bule, John Hauert, Fernando Mistura, Monika Sztajerowska, and Coralie Martin, all from the Investment Division of the OECD Directorate for Financial and Enterprise Affairs, and Narine Nersesyan, then Senior Economist at the OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration. It has benefited from discussions in the Investment Committee and comments from the OECD Secretariat, including the Secretariats of the Competition, Corporate Governance, Fiscal Affairs and Trade Committees. The Review has also benefited from inputs provided by the OECD Anti-Corruption Network for Eastern Europe and Central Asia and CleanGovBiz Initiative. The Review is made possible thanks to the financial support from Kazakhstan. The contents are the responsibility of the OECD and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Government of Kazakhstan.

The information in this Review is current as of 1 January 2017.