ASTANA, Kazakhstan, February 9. President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and head of Hong Kong-based Sunwah Group Jonathan Choi held talks on future areas of cooperation, Trend reports via the press service of the Kazakh president.
The sides concentrated on exploring opportunities for collaboration across various sectors such as finance, energy, digitalization, healthcare, agriculture, and construction.
President Tokayev emphasized Kazakhstan’s strong commitment to the development of its strategic partnership with China. He highlighted the successful implementation of the "Belt and Road Initiative" (BRI), which was first introduced in Astana in 2013 by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The Kazakh president noted the dynamic growth in trade and economic ties between the two countries, emphasizing that China is Kazakhstan’s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade consistently reaching new records.
A particular focus of the meeting was on investment cooperation. President Tokayev underlined Kazakhstan’s ongoing efforts to create favorable conditions for foreign investment and provide comprehensive support for joint strategic projects.
He also pointed out that the world is entering an era of rapid development of artificial intelligence, where China is a global leader. In this regard, he expressed Kazakhstan's interest in enhancing practical cooperation with China in this field.
For his part, Jonathan Choi praised Kazakhstan’s status as an attractive and reliable investment jurisdiction, particularly in the financial sector.
Sunwah Group is a Hong Kong-based conglomerate with businesses in eight principal areas, including seafood, real estate, financial services, technology, infrastructure, education, media, and green technology, with operations in mainland China, Macau, Japan, ASEAN countries, North America, Europe, and Australia.
Investment cooperation between China and Kazakhstan encompasses over $27 billion in Chinese investments since 2005, with bilateral trade projected to reach approximately $44 billion in 2023-24. Key sectors include energy, infrastructure, industrial ventures, and technology, with major projects driven by the Belt and Road Initiative. Highlights consist of significant investments in renewable energy, infrastructure upgrades for logistics, and collaborations in finance and education.
This partnership is propelled by geographic proximity, strategic alignment towards regional stability and connectivity, and a shift towards diversified economic engagements beyond oil, with a goal to substantially increase trade by 2030.
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