New opportunities for development of Kazakhstan’s transport sector

New opportunities for development of Kazakhstan’s transport sector

The transport sector has become a new growth point for Kazakhstan’s economy. This was facilitated by the fact that in the new realities the country has become a connecting link in the road network between Asia and Europe. To date, road, sea, railway, and air corridors are actively developing in the country. Large projects also have a positive impact on increasing Kazakhstan's transit capacity. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has called for the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route as a priority, as well as the implementation of major railway lines such as Dostyk-Moiynty, Bakhty-Ayagoz, Darbaza–Maktaaral, and a bypass line around Almaty. Cooperation also plays an important role.

«Kazakhstan’s transit potential and the Middle Corridor have garnered significant attention from China and other Southeast Asian countries, including South Korea, Japan, and Thailand. There is also considerable potential among the neighbouring countries in Central Asia, such as the Kyrgyz Republic and Uzbekistan, which can supply substantial products via the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route,» said Nurlan Kenessov, director of the Department of Transport Policy, Kazakh Ministry of Transport.

Kazakhstan has invested more than $35 billion in the transport and logistics sector over the past 15 years. The volume of freight transport has increased by nearly 30 percent over the past 10 years. The high demand for warehousing facilities allowed for an increase in their numbers. The current task is to raise the share of the transport sector in the country’s economy.

«In terms of GDP share, the current share of GDP stands at 6.1 percent, according to operational data. We aim to achieve a nine percent share of GDP in transport and warehousing. Regarding freight volumes by rail and road transport, they amounted to a total of 600 million tonnes last year, reflecting a growth of 1.5 percent in transit shipments through Kazakhstan,» Kenessov added.