Kazakhstan-US Investment Forum 2011

Held at New York’s Waldorf Astoria on 7 December 2011, the fourth annual Kazakhstan-US Investment Forum – organised in partnership with Newsdesk Media and sponsored by the National Welfare Fund, Samruk-Kazyna – was addressed via teleconference from Astana by Prime Minister Karim Massimov. He invited US investors to take advantage of the numerous business opportunities that have transpired as a result of Kazakhstan’s carefully planned strategy of diversification.

Other speakers of note included Kazakhstan’s Minister for Economic Integration, Zhanar Aitzhanova, who detailed the advantages of the Customs Union that now includes Kazakhstan, Russia and Belarus – a market of 170 million people. Aidan Karibzhanov, Deputy Head of Samruk-Kazyna looked at the company’s role in spurring innovation and industrial development, while HE Erlan Idrissov, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to the US, discussed the government’s efforts to encourage investment.

US participation in the forum came from the State Department’s Special Representative for Commercial and Business Affairs, Lorraine Hariton, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy, Jonathan Elkind and Vice-Chairman of Citigroup Zubaid Ahmad, among others. Their presentations focused on the prospects for future partnerships and emphasised the interest the US has in engaging with Kazakhstan as a dynamic Eurasian economy.

For further information, please visit: www.kazakhinvest.com