Dubai Chamber explores ways to tap Kazakh investment potential

Dubai / Emirates Business

The Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) in co-operation with Kazakhstan’s National Agency for Export and Investment (KAZNEX INVEST) and the Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the UAE, held the Kazakhstan Export briefing on Tuesday in a bid to explore potential for improving ties between Dubai and Kazakhstan across
several sectors.
These sectors include infrastructure and logistics, tourism, real estate, construction, food and agriculture processing.
Kairat Lama Sharif, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to the UAE, Sergey Karplyuk, Deputy Mayor of Kazakhstan’s Kostanay Region and Askar Arynov, Managing Director, KAZNEX INVEST, as well as top executives from 20 leading Kazakh businesses from a variety of sectors attended the briefing to explore investment opportunities in promising markets.
Atiq Juma Nasib, Senior Vice President of Commercial Services at Dubai Chamber, explained that Kazakhstan was an important trading partner for Dubai, and pointed out that bilateral non-oil trade had grown substantially in recent years to reach nearly US$188 million in 2015. This volume accounted for more than half of all trade between the UAE and the Central Asian country, he added.
“We see potential for increased co-operation between Dubai and Kazakhstan in several sectors, including infrastructure and logistics, tourism, real estate, construction, food and agriculture processing. We look forward to exploring some of those new and exciting opportunities,” noted Nasib.
He spoke about Dubai’s position as a gateway for doing business with other GCC countries and key markets across Africa, Asia and other regions. With a vibrant investment environment, modern infrastructural and logistics facilities and access to over two billion consumers in the region, the emirate serves as a unique hub from which Kazakh companies can benefit, he added.
Sharif stressed his country’s commitment to boosting bilateral trade through continued dialogue. “We are ready to establish new ties between our two countries and build on a trade relationship that began 25 years ago. We hope these negotiations will lay the foundation for closer relations and collaboration,” he said.
Karplyuk highlighted the key sectors offering the most potential to foreign investors and the UAE businesses, including agriculture, agribusiness and food industries, as these remain the biggest contributors to Kazakhstan’s economy.
Arynov of KAZNEX INVEST shared his insights on the current investment climate in Kazakhstan and explained some of the special benefits and incentives available to foreign companies that operate within the country’s free zones.
He explained that Kazakhstan’s relations with the UAE have remained strong, supported by a legal environment conducive to trade and business, adding that he hopes to see more Kazakh products
exported to Dubai in the future.
Following the seminar, a number of business-to-business meetings were held between Kazakh businesses and their UAE counterparts operating in the fields of mechanical engineering, construction, pharmaceuticals, food industries and chemicals.