Trade Portal in Kazakhstan to ease international trade
New ITC online platform provides step-by-step information for businesses on cross-border trade procedures in Kazakhstan
A new Trade Facilitation Portal in Kazakhstan will reduce the time and cost to do trade across borders. The portal provides a detailed description of all the import, export and transit formalities, including required documents, forms and applicable regulations and procedures that is essential information for small businesses. It covers more than 50 commodities traded across the border with a focus on the agri-food sector.
The International Trade Centre’s Ready4Trade Central Asia project, funded by the European Union, initiated the implementation of the portal.
EU Ambassador to Kazakhstan H.E. Kestutis Jankauskas said during the launch: “The European Union is delighted to witness Kazakhstan’s commitment to sustainable and inclusive economic development in Central Asia. This portal is a cutting-edge technological tool providing single source of information on trade formalities, which will ensure the transparency of trade procedures.”
The platform was developed in collaboration with the country’s Ministry of Trade and Integration and the “QazTrade” Trade Policy Development Center JSC, who will be administering the portal.
“Since the entry into force of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement in February 2017, Kazakhstan has come a long way reforming its regulatory framework and policies to provide a conducive business environment, which helped our country to become a global player in international trade, trading with 190 countries,” said Aliya Alimbetova, Director of the Department of Foreign Trade Activities at the Ministry of Trade and Integration in Kazakhstan. “With the Kazakhstan Trade Portal, we go further to contribute to sustainable and comprehensive economic development not only for Kazakhstan, but for the entire Central Asian region.”
To ensure Kazakhstan’s ownership of the portal, the Ready4Trade team supported QazTrade in establishing a working group of 23 members representing 12 state bodies, organizations, and business associations. The working group meets regularly to ensure continuous updates of the portal.
“For the first time, we documented the business processes of import and export operations of seaports step-by-step. Also, our experts compared information on trade procedures at checkpoints along the borders of Kazakhstan. I am confident that the Trade Portal will guide all trading procedures,” said Azamat Askaruly, the CEO of the QazTrade Trade Policy Development Center JSC.
Timothee Bruneteau, Trade Facilitation expert at ITC responsible for the development of the platform, said: “The portal closes the information gap on cross-border trade formalities for small businesses. It will provide a vital stimulus to traders and boost the competitiveness of Kazakhstan in international markets.”
The online platform, which was developed in collaboration with the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), is used in around 30 countries and available in neighboring Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It contributes to achieving the goal of trade facilitation embedded in the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement.
About the project
The International Trade Centre’s Ready4Trade Central Asia project supports the development of intra-regional and international trade in five Central Asian countries. Funded by the European Union, the four-year initiative is a trade component of a larger EU-funded programme that supports investment, competitiveness and trade, thus contributing to sustainable and inclusive economic development in the region.