It is planned to present the development strategy of Ekibastuz within six months

A medium-term plan for the development of Ekibastuz is worked out in Pavlodar region. It is the instruction of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Representatives of the central government agencies took part in the online meeting in the regional akimat. 

The head of the region Abylkair Skakov said that it was necessary to study the potential of all directions in the development of the city. He also stressed the importance of urban planning and opening of attraction centres - for work, study and even people’s leisure in Ekibastuz. 

“There was a time when Ekibastuz was a long-term city for all young people from the Soviet Union. At that time, the city was self-sufficient, but today, it has not enough agricultural products. There are many other problematic issues and different ways to develop self-sufficiency of Ekibastuz. Each of them should be studied”, akim noted. 

Creation of the industrial zone, cluster development, energy modernization, education system, innovation and small and medium business should be the drivers for diversification of the economy of Ekibastuz. To achieve the goal it was proposed to use the Swedish model of "three spirals" based on the interaction of the university, government and business. The rector of S.Toraigyrov University Meiram Begentayev, who took part in the meeting, said that his university had all necessary resources to develop and implement the strategy.

The Vice Minister of National Economy Alisher Abdykadyrov said that one of the main problems in the further development of Ekibastuz was the demographic issue.

“The comprehensive plan for the development of Ekibastuz is based on improving the quality of people’s life, growth in income, in particular, creation of new industries, attraction of new investors, diversification of economy of the city and etc. After that people will believe in the development of Ekibastuz”, deputy Minister said.

It is proposed to involve consulting firms in the development of the concept. Representatives of the international network of KPMG companies shared their ideas. The head of KPMG in Kazakhstan and Central Asia Bolat Mynbayev noted that it was essential to take the development strategy of city-building enterprises into account in the forming of the development plan of Ekibastuz.

“Their plans will have a direct impact on the development of the city. Special attention should be paid to small and medium-sized business. If we look at the development strategies of other cities, they are aimed at providing employment in small and medium-size enterprises. Ekibastuz has a substantial potential for the development of microbusiness around large companies”, Bolat Mynbayev added. 

The medium-term strategy for the development of Ekibastuz must be presented within the next six months.