Kazakhstan became a member of the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) in June 1997. The country is part of one of UNIDO's five regional programmes, the Programme for Europe and Central Asia.
In December 2009, at the 13th session of the UNIDO General Conference in Vienna, Kazakhstan was elected to the Industrial Development Board, UNIDO's main elected body, for the period 2010-2013.
UNIDO Director General Kamdel Yumkella visited Kazakhstan in July 2010. His visit included speeches at the plenary session and the thematic session of the 3rd Astana Economic Forum, meetings with the Head of State, Deputy Prime Minister, as well as the leadership of the Ministry of Environment, Samruk-Kazyna, Damu Fund. The Director General also visited the locomotive plant in Astana. The visit was the first ever visit of a UNIDO head to Central Asia.
In April-May 2014, UNIDO Director General Li Yong visited Kazakhstan. He met with the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan, following which the parties signed a Joint Declaration on Cooperation between Kazakhstan and UNIDO, which defined the main areas of cooperation.
The Director General also held meetings with the Deputy Prime Minister, and the heads of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Environment and Water Resources and Ministry of Economy and Budget Planning. Following the visit, Kazakhstan made a voluntary contribution of €95,000 to UNIDO in July 2014.
UNIDO management has been actively supporting Kazakhstan's international initiatives, including by regularly participating in the Astana Economic Forum since 2009.
In 2014, cooperation with UNIDO reached a qualitatively new level. UNIDO Director General Li Yong was one of the keynote speakers at the First Plenary Session "II World Anti-Crisis Conference" at the Asian Development Bank Board of Governors meeting (2 May 2014, Astana).
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan met with the Head of UNIDO Li Yong to discuss the current state of cooperation on the margins of 16th session of the UNIDO General Conference in Vienna from 30 November to 4 December 2015. Following the meeting, UNIDO Head Li Yong expressed his readiness to support the Head of State's initiative to establish an International Green Technology Development Centre (IGTDC). In January 2016 and April 2017, UNIDO sent comments on the concept of establishing the IGTDC.
The practical outcome of the General Conference for Kazakhstan was the signing of the Administrative Agreement between the Government of Kazakhstan and UNIDO on Targeted Contributions to the UNIDO Industrial Development Fund on 2 December 2015. The Administrative Agreement entered into force in November 2016.
Kazakhstan actively participates in UNIDO regional projects. Kazakhstan participated in such interregional projects as "Support to industrial integration processes of EurAsEC Member States" (2010-2013), "Capacity building for programme development to address global environmental issues" (2013-2015) and "Improvement of industrial statistics and development of statistical indicators for analysis of industrial development in CIS countries" (2014-2015).
On 11-14 June 2017, a UNIDO delegation led by Director-General Li Yong visited Astana to participate in the opening ceremony of the UN Special Day, where he delivered a message on behalf of UN Secretary-General Guterres, at the International Exposition Expo 2017 (13 June 2017) and the Ministerial Conference "Securing Sustainable Energy" at the 8th International Forum on Energy for Sustainable Development, where he moderated one of the Ministerial Dialogue sessions.
Li Yong’s visit included meetings with the Kazakh Prime Minister, Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Investment and Development, Information and Communications, and the Advisor to the Minister of Investment and Development, during which a wide range of cooperation issues between the RoK and UNIDO were discussed, including the "Third modernisation of Kazakhstan", the establishment of the IGTDC and the International Technopark for IT start-ups on the basis of the EXPO 2017 infrastructure, joint projects between Kazakhstan and UNIDO, cooperation within the framework of the KazAID Official Development Assistance Agency and others.
In July 2018, Kazakhstan joined UNIDO's Partnership for Action on Green Economy initiative (PAGE) to support countries facing challenges caused by climate change, including water and ecosystem management, by providing basic training and awareness-raising on green industry. The partnership includes five UN organizations: the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), UNIDO and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). UNIDO is also to assess and develop the industrial waste section of the National Waste Management Programme and support the development of an appropriate legal and regulatory framework.
A regional project on the disposal of ozone-depleting substances (ODS) and persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Armenia is ongoing, with technical assistance being provided to participating countries through the Global Environment Facility (GEF) grant for the acquisition, supply, installation, training and commissioning of hazardous waste treatment/neutralisation equipment.
The Global Cleantech Innovation Programme in Kazakhstan is expected to be launched in 2023 as part of a joint programme between UNIDO and the GEF, which is also its sponsor. Under the project, the Kazakh partners will create an innovative green technology ecosystem that will bring together large companies, SMEs, government, scientific institutions and universities to create new products and technological solutions in the field of green technology.