OREANDA-NEWS. June 15, 2009. The theme of the session: “Alternative Sources of Finance for Further Economic Development of Kazakhstan under the Varying Conditions in the Global Financial Markets”, reported the Official website akorda.kz.

Minister of Industry and Trade Aset Issekeshev presented new members of the Council – CEO of Royal Dutch Shell Peter Voser, Director General of the UC RUSAL Oleg Deripaska, Executive Vice President of Mitsubishi TetsuroTerada, President of TeliaSonera Lars Nyberg. The Governor of the National Bank Grigory Marchenko and Presidential Aide Kuandyk Bishimbayev are included in the Council from the Kazakhstani side.

Aset Issekeshev also reported on the implementation of the Protocol of the 20th Plenary Session of the Foreign Investors’ Сouncil.

President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Thomas Mirow delivered a speech where he outlined problems of domestic measures to expand access to traditional and alternative sources of finance.

Minister of Economy and Budget Planning Bakhyt Sultanov devoted his speech to the issues on attracting funds through diversification of sources of finance for the economy of Kazakhstan and through the alternative instruments of attracting investments.

In the course of the session the Council members discussed main issues of the session’s theme and other crucial questions of the investment climate and investment policy of Kazakhstan.

Summing up the meeting, the head of state emphasized that despite the first signs of improvement, all countries continue tackling current economic challenges.

Kazakhstan was among the first to elaborate its anti-crisis program. For its realization the state allocated more than US 19 billion that makes 14 percent of the country’s GDP. To date, in Kazakhstan we have seen the first positive results.

“The international Rating Agency Standard & Poor’s has recently upgrade Kazakhstan sovereign ratings. It is an important and positive sign of the fact that we are on the right way,” the President stressed.

Moreover, the crisis once again proved a need for economy diversification. That is why starting from the beginning of the next year; Kazakhstan will launch a five-year plan of accelerated industrial and innovative development.

Active involvement of foreign investors along with mobilization of financial resources is one of the important factors of the program's successful realization.

In this connection the head of state drew attention of the Council members to the need for development of Kazakhstan participation, to create conditions for foreign investors to reinvest their profits, to the importance of a shift from short-term speculative investments to long-term investments into the traditional branches of the country's economy.

The next session of the Foreign Investors’ Council chaired by the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan will be held in Astana, on December 4 and devoted to the issues on diversification and technological development of Kazakhstan.

On the same day President Nursultan Nazarbayev held bilateral meetings with President of the EBRD Thomas Mirow, Chairman of the Board of Directors of ArcelorMittal Lakshmi Mittal, and Director General of the UC RUSAL Oleg Deripaska.