BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 12. Kazakhstan will launch pilot Business Support and Assistance Centers in five regions to provide entrepreneurs with comprehensive support through a “one-stop-shop” mechanism.
This was reflected in the statement published by the official information resource of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
The concept of creating the centers was presented at a Government meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Economy Serik Zhumangarin. The pilot project will be implemented on the basis of regional branches of the Damu Entrepreneurship Development Fund.
According to Damu Chairman of the Board Farkhat Sarsekeyev, entrepreneurs currently have access to various state support instruments. However, when businesses face challenges, they often do not know which authority or organization can address their issues, as solutions may involve several government agencies and institutions.
The new centers are intended to create a unified mechanism for supporting businesses, from identifying a problem to resolving it. “When creating the centers, more than 2,400 SME requests from the register of problematic issues of the Atameken National Chamber of Entrepreneurs were analyzed. More than 600 of them came from the regions where the pilot project will be launched. Most business requests concerned access to financing, debt restructuring, obtaining state support measures, taxation, product sales and consultations on developing entrepreneurial skills. A significant share of requests also related to the agricultural sector. These areas will be the focus of the Business Support and Assistance Centers. At the same time, the key performance indicator of the centers will not be the number of consultations provided, but the share of entrepreneurs’ issues resolved,” Sarsekeyev said.
The centers will operate on a “one-stop-shop” principle, allowing entrepreneurs to receive consultations on various issues at Damu Fund branches. Under the pilot project, centers will be established in Astana, Almaty, Shymkent, North Kazakhstan and Aktobe regions. The pilot phase will run from September to December, after which the effectiveness of the mechanism will be assessed and a decision will be made on expanding the project to other regions of Kazakhstan.
Following the presentation, a working group was established with representatives of relevant government and law enforcement bodies, financial regulators and the Damu Fund to develop mechanisms for launching and operating the centers.
