World Monitor Mag WM_June 2018 web | Page 31

INVEST TO KAZAKHSTAN financial institutions, big audit and consulting companies, such as the ‘BIG 4’. These are the companies whose budget is bigger than the budget of our whole country, such companies where the selection of top management is assigned a year ahead, these are the giants that control the overwhelming share of the world market. What are these companies? Can you give specific examples? Among members of FIC, I would like to highlight the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development – it is the silent co-chairman of the Council. Representatives of the oil & gas sector are also in the Council. Among them are Chevron, Total, Lukoil, Eni, ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell, CNPC, the biggest metallurgical company ArcelorMittal, the big international trade company METRO Cash & Carry, as well as big companies like General Electric, Anadolu Group, Marubeni Corporation, the leader in the cellular connection field as TeliaSonera, automotive giant Mitsubishi, international innovation- production company Knauf, big consulting companies like EY, Baker McKenzie, PWC, Deloitte, representatives of the banking sector – Citi Bank, Deutsche Bank, Sberbank, Asian Bank for Development. These are all big players that annually meet utilizing the platform of the Council and exchange opinions. Tell us a bit more of who performs from Kazakhstan’s side? Are they representatives from state institutions? What is their level? Exactly, the Council also consists of Kazakhstani representatives. Primarily, all the leaders of the economic block are part of it: the Prime Minister, Chairman of the National Bank, the Prime Minister’s deputies, Minister of foreign affairs, Minister for investment and development, Minister of finance, Minister of national economy, Chairman of the in- vestment Committee, and Chairman of Baiterek National Managing Holding. We figured out that in accordance with the ‘Council’s Provision’, mutual working groups (WG) were created. Can you describe these working groups? What is their objective? How do they work? You noticed correctly that mutual groups of the Council were created according to the ‘Council’s Provision’ with the objective to consider issues that are related to the investment climate in the Republic of Kazakhstan, providing recommendations to the Council’s members and state bodies of Kazakhstan to improve this climate. There are four mutual working groups that act within the Council. This platform is where the exact focus is at a certain issue: one WG in the field of subsoil use and ecological questions; the second one is to accomplish the investment policy; the third deals with social protection and work force; the fourth group involves the theme from the previous session and annually focuses on this main theme of the meeting. Now the fourth WG is aimed at the modernization topic. Every working group from Kazakhstan’s side is headed by ministers. They are ministers who are corresponding to the issue. If the question is related to labor, then the Minister of Labor and Social Protection will be included, while the Minister for Investments and Development represents in the case of investment policy. In accordance with the theme for the 31st session for modernization, the fourth working group is headed by Mr Timur Suleimenov who works on the content preparation for the meeting. The working body of the FIC is the Investment Committee of MID of the RoK. The Committe has been providing the activity of the Council for more than 20 years. The mutual work of these working groups helps provide a wider exchange as well as preparation for recommendations. Foreign investors are interested in how to bring in the foreign working force. There are representatives of foreign investors on this platform, not just members of the Council, but the others who are interested in this work, including the representatives of state institutions. The issues that investors supported by EUROBAK 29