President of Kazakhstan called Almaty a corruption city

The business and financial center of Kazakhstan (the city of Almaty) lags behind a number of other regions in many aspects, including corruption. This statement was made today by Kazakh President Kasym-Zhomart Tokaev at the meeting on the development of Almaty.

According to Tokaev, the role of Almaty in the life of the country is very high. The city, first of all, is the main donor of the republican budget due to business development and innovation. Thus Tokaev urged to pay great attention to improve the business climate and increase investment attractiveness of the city.

“If we really want to strengthen both the investment and tourist attractiveness of the largest cities, the country as a whole, we should get rid of such an anachronism as the mandatory registration of foreigners at the migration police,” said Tokaev.

He also noted that Almaty entrepreneurs face a number of problems that impede their development.

“The results of entrepreneurs’ survey show that the city is lagging behind in a number of indicators, including the effectiveness of local executive bodies, the prevalence of corruption, the validity of inspections. The city’s municipality does not remove the task of comprehensive business support and the removal of various barriers. Almaty should maintain the status of the main business center of the country,” the President emphasized.

Recall, according to the results of the study “Monitoring the state of corruption in Kazakhstan”, conducted by the Foundation “Transparency Kazakhstan”, Almaty is the first among the most corrupt regions of the country.