The Ministry of Agriculture outlined the main tasks of the industry’s development within the framework of the President's Address "New Opportunities Under the Fourth Industrial Revolution."

 

Tasks for 2018

The AIC is facing the task of increasing the labor productivity and export of processed products by 2.5 times. For its implementation, the ministry's main efforts and resources are concentrated on nine key areas:

• accessibility of financing for agribusiness entities;
• availability of markets and export development;
• effectiveness of state control and supervision;
• improvement of taxation;
• science, education and knowledge dissemination;
• digital innovation of AIC;
• availability of technology;
• effective use of water resources;
• sustainable management of biological resources.

Measurable indicators and specific tasks have been defined for each direction. Thus, it is proposed to restart agrarian science to focus mainly on the introduction of the best available technologies in the world, and not on the invention of breeds of animals.

The Ministry has three universities and 23 research institutes. A decision was made to halve their number due to enlargement. It is necessary to overcome the isolation of science from real production. Leading and scientific cadres will be chosen strictly according to the principle of progressive thinking and orientation to the needs of producers in increasing productivity and competitiveness.

As part of the AIC digitalization, the emphasis will be placed on the introduction of elements of precision farming and smart farms, from which the greatest effect is expected.

At the first stage, there is a need to create electronic maps of fields with geopolitical, vegetative, agrochemical, hydrogeological meliorative and meteorological layers.

According to preliminary data, cultivated areas of crops in 2018 will amount to more than 21.8 million hectares. Cereals are planned to be located on an area of ​​14.7 million hectares, including wheat — by 11.4 million hectares with a decrease to the level of 2017 for 0.5 million hectares. Oilseeds will be located on an area of ​​about 2.6 million hectares.

In the current year, according to the applications of the regions, 375 thousand tons of diesel fuel is needed. Now the project of the Graphics on fixing the areas for the refinery is under coordination with the Ministry of Energy.

To achieve the goals set by the Head of State, the Project Office have been established. The architecture of the AIC program and the infrastructure of the Project Office have been built.

 

A set of measures for export promotion

To fulfill the export objectives, the Register of Priority Export Markets and Goods of the AIC that indicates the requirements of the importing countries will be published in April this year, an information and analytical basis (constantly updated) for the export of agricultural products will be created.

Second, specific measures will be taken to stimulate production, branding, certification and promotion of domestic organic and halal products to foreign markets.

Third, the AIC Logistics Map will be developed to address transport and logistics issues. Work will be intensified in coordination with the veterinary and phytosanitary requirements of importing countries .

In December 2017, five Kazakhstani lamb enterprises were included in the Register of Exporters' Companies that have the right to export to China. Six companies are expected to be included in the Register for honey and ten for fish. It is planned to set an agreement  with China on veterinary requirements for beef, sheep and camels, phytosanitary requirements for flax, beans, peas, safflower, melon seeds, lucern and oil cake.

The coordination with Iran of the requirements for beef and live cattle is being finalized, and a veterinary certificate for the export of livestock for slaughter and breeding is being prepared with Saudi Arabia. Negotiations are planned with Israel, Kuwait, Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, and the EU.

The Ministry of Agriculture initiated the introduction of a representative (advisor, attache) on AIC issues in priority countries (China, Iran, France, Italy, Australia and Canada).

In animal husbandry, the sectors of beef cattle and sheep breeding should become strategic directions of the development.

To increase the export of meat, the approach to the development of cooperation will be revised. The development of small and medium farmers will be encouraged in cooperation with large feedlot sites, which will ensure their marketing, distribution of technologies, knowledge and access to financing.

This new type of cooperation will allow economically to combine both large and small entities of the agroindustrial complex using elements of horizontal and vertical cooperation.

There are already such schemes of the association in the republic, for example, in meat cattle breeding, Aktep GC in Aktobe region, KazBeef LLP in Akmola region, North Agro LLP and Terra LLP in Kostanay region, in milk production, Natige LLP in Karaganda region, Vostok-Moloko LLP in EKR and others.

At present, the Ministry together with the business and akimats of the regions has developed the approximate models for the development of the anchor agricultural cooperation.

For example, in meat cattle breeding, the anchor enterprise will be an export-oriented feedlot site that will engage existing peasant farms, agricultural co-operatives and other agricultural producers in the production of beef, by distributing pedigree bulls for transformation, transfer of the breeding stock for breeding and management, foraging feed, and will also ensure the guaranteed purchase of grown bulls at a market price.

One of such examples is the Meat cluster created in the Aktobe region on the basis of the Aktep group of companies, which today includes a pedigree loudspeaker for 10 thousand heads, an export-oriented feedlot for 13 thousand livestock places, a modern meat-processing complex for 7,2 thousand tons of beef per year and feed mill for 20 thousand tons per year.

A single cluster has been formed around this, uniting more than 300 medium farmers and collective farmers, covering all the technological chains: livestock breeding, fodder production, modern cattle fattening, processing, sales of production. The basic principle of the cluster is the cooperation of the capabilities of all participants to achieve common goals. The results speak for themselves — in 2011 the company achieved an increase in the aggregate revenue of the cluster eight times from 500 million tenge to 4 billion tenge. In addition, in six years the production of beef increased from 323 tons to 3078 tons (10 times), the number of pedigree livestock increased from 2497 to 9725 heads, livestock — from 6.7 thousand heads to 25.7 thousand heads, use of pastures — from 231.3 thousand hectares to 458.3 thousand hectares.

Comprehensive discussion of the experience of the Meat Cluster on the basis of Actep on January 31 of the current year with the participation of akimat representatives and regional agricultural producers, industry unions and foreign experts, showed that this practice can be effectively replicated with the support of the state for the necessary programs.

In dairy cattle breeding, the milk processing plant will act as an anchor, which will create an infrastructure and build logistics for the procurement of milk, monitor milk quality, and provide feed distribution services. Also, to ensure the necessary feed base, milk producers will interact with feed producers.

In both cases, anchoring enterprises will accompany quality control of products, provide zootechnical and veterinary services, and organize training in the use of modern technologies.

The proposed models for the development of anchor agricultural cooperation are an effective tool for increasing labor productivity and reducing the cost of agricultural products. In anchor agricultural cooperatives, it is envisaged to link to an anchor enterprise, which will independently build mutual relations and financial regulation with other market participants.

 

Joining the world's top 5 meat exporters

The first necessary steps towards developing the export potential have been made and there are achieved results, and, most importantly, successful experience has been obtained. Thus, the implementation of the program to develop the export potential of cattle meat has become the impetus for creating the basis for meat production in the country — an infrastructure has been created to export 60 thousand tons of high-quality beef, namely:

• 86 reproducers were built with the delivery of breeding stock of 55 thousand heads of cattle (only 1% of the total number of livestock) — the share of breeding stock was doubled, by 304,3 thousand heads;
• the number of small and medium farmers participating in the Sybaga program reached 16 thousand, the share of livestock in the peasant farm increased from 5% to 35%, ensuring the fastest growth of SMEs in the industry in 5 years;
• 34 industrial fattening grounds and 12 meat processing plants were created, with a total capacity of 60 thousand tons for export;
• a legislative base and measures of state support for the functioning of the industry have been created.

The experience shows that Kazakhstan has real chances to enter the world’s top-5 meat exporters in the near future, based on the model of development of small and medium farmers in cooperation with large fattening sites in regional clusters that provide them with the sale of products, the spread of technology, knowledge and access to financing.

 

Tasks in the field of water resources, land matters

In the framework of the State Program for the AIC Development, in the current year, 8.8 billion tenge was allocated from the republican budget to ensure the maintenance and operation of transboundary and republican water management facilities for efficient use of water resources.

In 2018, construction and installation works will be completed for the remaining 8 of the 15 emergency reservoirs. It is planned to build 22 new reservoirs, which will allow 160-180 thousand hectares of irrigated land to be put into circulation in the future. Environmental protection releases in the volume of 1,4 km3 will be continued to preserve the ecological state of the water bodies.

Also, it is planned to develop the concept of a single operator for water supply and sanitation of rural settlements.

In the part of forestry, wildlife and specially protected areas, within the framework of the third modernization of the AIC, activities are planned in two directions: sustainable management of biological resources and digitalization of the AIC.

The formation of a map for the development of a network of specially protected natural areas has been started.

Together with local executive bodies, a step-by-step plan will be approved to increase the volume of forest reproduction and afforestation by 10 thousand hectares per year.

To preserve sturgeon species of fish, the issue of allocation of funds from the republican budget for the development of design estimates for the reconstruction of the Ural-Atyrau sturgeon hatchery is under consideration. Reconstruction of the plant will create conditions for maintaining the repair and broodstock of sturgeon species of fish and increase the output of sturgeon whitebaits in the natural environment from 3.5 to 6 million pieces per year.

In general, a systemic solution of issues of conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity will be reflected in a separate section of the AIC Development Program until 2021.

In the field of land management in 2018, a number of tasks aimed at improving the efficiency of land use are planned. In particular, in order to strengthen the state control of agricultural land, it is planned to create a geoportal for monitoring farmland based on satellite imagery data.

In the framework of the State program for the AIC Development, work is underway on soil, geobotanical research and soil evaluation, according to which the creation of electronic soil geobotanical maps is planned.

The akimats started work on the revision of the land fund on the industrial and specially protected areas of ​​10 million hectares. Within the scope of the audit, work will continue to establish borders of 1208 settlements.

International experts advised on the creation of a single legal and land cadastre in Kazakhstan. This year, it is planned to develop conceptual approaches to the creation of the Single State Real Estate Cadastre (SSREC), which will allow Kazakhstan to increase its level in the World Bank's Doing Business ranking.

In addition, within the framework of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) project, it is envisaged to establish a new state coordinate system and create a single open digital map of Kazakhstan on its basis, that is included in the Digital Kazakhstan State Program.

Also, to date, amendments are being made to the current Rules for the Organization and Holding of Tenders (tenders, auctions) for the sale of land plots or the right to lease land plots in electronic form, which ensure the conduct of bidding on the web portal of the State Property Register. Work has begun on the collection and analysis of proposals for the further improvement of legislation in the field of land regulation.

The Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan is confident that the implementation of the nine key areas of work in 2018 will help achieve the desired results and make the AIC one of the most stable leaders of the domestic economy.