ASTANA CITY OF INVESTMENT
en

Olzhas Bektenov: Central Asian countries and Japan have great potential for progressive expansion of cooperation

stay

On behalf of the Head of State, Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov took part in the business forum of the Dialogue "Central Asia + Japan".

More than 450 representatives of delegations of the countries of the Central Asian region and Japan gathered at the forum. Business circles of Japan are represented by the management and managers of such large companies as Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries EMEA, Ltd., Mitsui & Co., Ltd, from the expert community took part scientific workers of branch universities and others. Prospects for strengthening economic ties and expanding cooperation, including in the field of digitalisation, transport and logistics industry, agribusiness, heavy industry sector, etc. were discussed.

Head of the Government Olzhas Bektenov in his welcoming speech outlined the key areas for increasing multilateral cooperation.

"Japan is rightly considered one of the economic and technological leaders of global scale. Products of Japanese companies are renowned for their quality, reliability and innovation. The country is invariably at the forefront of progress, making an invaluable contribution to improving the quality of life of people around the world. In turn, Central Asia is a dynamically developing region with huge growth potential and all conditions for comprehensive cooperation. I believe that the countries of our region and Japan have great potential for progressive expansion of co-operation. The implementation of transnational projects with the participation of Japanese investors undoubtedly contributes to increasing the level of economic interconnectivity in the region. Today's productive negotiations are designed to bring our multifaceted partnership to a qualitatively new level," Olzhas Bektenov emphasised.

Prime Minister focused attention on the interaction between Central Asia and Japan in the transfer of advanced technologies and production of products with high added value. In this direction the possibility of creating joint innovation clusters, technology parks and incubators was noted.

A unique IT ecosystem is being created in the Central Asian region, which allows for significant modernisation of the public administration sector, fintech industry and e-commerce. In this regard, cooperation between the Central Asian countries and Japan in the introduction of artificial intelligence technologies, construction of data centres, cyber security can be fruitful for all parties, said Head of the Government Olzhas Bektenov. Japan's agricultural technologies based on AI, robotics and other advanced scientific achievements are also of interest.

Potential cooperation between the International Financial Centre of Astana and the Tokyo Stock Exchange can make a significant contribution to increasing cooperation in the financial sector and deepening interregional partnership.

Attention was paid to expanding partnerships in the development of rare earth metal deposits and the implementation of joint projects in the transport and logistics sector. The transit potential of Central Asia with access to the North, South, East and West offers great opportunities for Japanese exports and imports.

Chairman of the Management Board of NC KAZAKH INVEST JSC Yerzhan Yelekeyev, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Marubeni Corporation Fumiya Kokubu and others also spoke at the business forum.

The outcome of the business forum within the framework of the Dialogue "Central Asia + Japan" will be the signing of documents on the implementation of joint projects designed to bring the multifaceted partnership to a new level.

Official Information Source of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan