05 April 2018, 10:47
President Nursultan Nazarbayev's Address to Kazakhstanis of the joint session of the Chambers of the Parliament — Five New Social Initiatives — caused great resonance not only in our country, but also all over the world. Various world experts continue to express their views on the prospects of the announced initiatives.
The initiatives voiced by Elbasy received positive evaluation from experts of different countries: the USA, China, Great Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, Jordan, Switzerland, Turkey, France, Croatia, Azerbaijan, etc.
President Nursultan Nazarbayev's social initiatives are being commented on in the United States. American political scientist, leading expert in foreign policy, security and international relations, Ariel Cohen, considers new initiatives aimed at social modernization to be the great progress of Kazakhstan.
"The current package of documentary reforms is a big step on the way of social development and stabilization of the social sphere in Kazakhstan. It is very important that the poor receive such broad support from the state, including rent benefits, tax cuts, education conditions and microcredit. It also indicates that the overall level of Kazakhstan's economic development has grown. This is an evidence of the great progress of Kazakhstan, the people and the President," said Ariel Cohen.
These are the words of the official representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China, Lu Kang.
"The Chinese side supports the social initiatives of the President of Kazakhstan. We are confident that these proposals will lead to an improvement in the well-being of the population," said Lu Kang.
In an interview with one of the Kazakh TV channels, Professor Wang Xianju, professor of the Chinese National University, shared his opinion on the Five Social Initiatives.
"The Chinese people have a proverb: "A highly educated person sees far away." Kazakhstan in this respect is on the right track. Your President Nursultan Nazarbayev pays much attention to youth. The allocation of additional grants, access to quality education, and support for young people allow your country to receive a generation of highly qualified specialists. And this is the most effective investment in the future of the state," Wang Xianju stressed.
Director of the Institute of Economic Studies on the One Belt, One Way at the People's University of China, Guan Xueling, believes that reducing the tax burden for low-paid workers and expanding the volume of microcredit will improve the overall business climate in Kazakhstan, increase the number of small and medium businesses, and improve the investment attractiveness of the country.
The discussion on the President’s social initiatives was not left aside by the Russians. The economic effect of the President's Five Social Initiatives will be manifested in the coming years, Russian economists are sure. In particular, the reduction of the tax burden and the expansion of microcredit will accelerate the country's economic growth and will help achieve the goal specified in the Kazakhstan-2050 strategy — to bring the share of small and medium businesses in the country's GDP to 50%. This is the opinion of Professor of the Higher School of Economics, Alexander Abramov.
"In part, the effect is likely to be quite rapid in terms of the fact that people will strive to get education, improve housing and, against this background, human capital will improve, people will work more efficiently, they will want to change something. If we talk about mortgage, education, financing of small business, these effects are more long term. 2-3 years is the minimum period to see the economic efficiency," said Alexander Abramov.
Yaroslav Lissovolik, Chief Economist at the Eurasian Development Bank, said that the five initiatives proposed by the President of Kazakhstan, in particular, reduction of the tax burden for low-wage Kazakhstanis, the creation of conditions for obtaining relevant education, and lending for small and medium businesses — all of this will cover broad population with a strategy of economic development.
"Kazakhstan is one of the successful economies in the Eurasian space in terms of reducing income inequality. This kind of measure makes an additional step towards reducing imbalances. This is precisely the strategy of involving the widest possible sections of the population in the economic development strategy of Kazakhstan. First of all, to reduce the tax burden on the poorest segments of the population — here we can say that Kazakhstan is at the forefront of these measures, and we see such tendencies from the point of view of economic policy in a number of European countries," said Yaroslav Lissovolik.
Deputies of the Bundestag of Germany say that the social reforms carried out in Kazakhstan are meaningful.
"The Social Initiatives announced by the President, from gas supply to tax cuts are very important. The number of educational grants will increase in Kazakhstan. This is great news. Kazakhstan needs highly educated cadres who will develop the country. The country has a clear strategy. I am glad that Kazakhstan is confidently moving step by step towards its goal. Kazakhstan is on the right track," said deputy Axel Fischer.
According to German politician, Tankred Schipanski, Astana and Berlin have a similar social policy.
"I believe that President N. Nazarbayev presented 5 broad initiatives that should strengthen social cohesion. I want to emphasize two initiatives. The first concerns the provision of housing. Germany is taking the same steps. We want to give an opportunity to young families to improve their living conditions. And we follow the same strategy as Kazakhstan. The second important initiative of the President is the improvement of the quality of education and increase in the number of grants. The president focuses on science, on the training of engineers and other sought-after specialists. We welcome these initiatives and wish the Kazakh people and the President success in implementation of these initiatives," Tankred Schipanski comments.
The expert on Central Asia and the South Caucasus countries of Potsdam University, Matthias Dornfeldt, believes that the Five Social Initiatives contribute to the development of the rural economy and support the poorer sections of the population. This balanced program should benefit all Kazakhstanis.
The director on projects for CIS countries of Nunner Logistics, Tonnie Straub (Netherlands), commented on the Five Social Initiatives of the President.
"The authorities of Kazakhstan continue to give priority to social initiatives. This is the correct position and direction. Nursultan Nazarbayev continues to work for the benefit of Kazakhstan and his people," T. Straub said.
In his opinion, these initiatives of the President will make the Kazakhstani society even stronger. Theyare largely focused on the younger generation who will build the country of their dreams.
"The president is prioritizing the right things, and one of them is education. The value of the country, above all, is in people. Additional granting of students will positively affect the country's economy, especially in the conditions of the fourth industrial revolution," the expert concluded.
Expert and journalist from Jordan, Mashhur Abu Aid, spoke about the benefits of social reforms on the example of his country.
"The Five Social Initiatives of the President of Kazakhstan are a huge breakthrough in the country's social modernization and ensuring of the welfare of citizens. In Jordan, a similar program has recently been introduced with regard to affordable housing for citizens at 7% for 20-25 years. Later a survey of the population showed that the citizens responded positively to the new program. They would better to pay for their own property than for renting an apartment. However, in addition, Nursultan Nazarbayev's initiatives cover broader spheres — higher education, microcredit for small and medium businesses, gas supply and others," said expert and journalist from Jordan, Mashhur Abu Aid.
The employee of the Atomic Energy Agency of Jordan, Khaled Nader Abdel-Jalil, declared his desire to move to Kazakhstan at all: "President Nazarbayev's initiatives are realistic and feasible, and most importantly they give young people and ordinary citizens a chance to live a decent life. Therefore, we are thinking of moving to Kazakhstan. Children are delighted with this possibility, and the mentality and culture of the Kazakhs are close and understandable to me."
Professor, Academic Dean at Swiss School of Economics, Verbier, the head of the international program MIM (Master's on International Management), implemented at the University of Shakarim, Dominique Jordan, told of his impressions from the Address of the President to the people, Five Social Initiatives.
"I carefully read the Address of President Nursultan Nazarbayev to his people, and I can say that this is a message of hope, how the Head of State sees his people in the future, who lives in harmony and prosperity. It becomes clear how much the President's thoughts and heart are concerned with the welfare of his compatriots," Dominique Jordan expressed his opinion.
In his opinion, Kazakhstan is an example of how society can live in peace and harmony. All five initiatives, as the expert says, will prove useful for the whole society.
Social initiatives of the President of Kazakhstan are also commented on in the academic circles of Turkey. Professor of the Mimar Sinan University of Fine Arts, historian Abdiuakap Kara highly assesses the proposals voiced and believes that they will have a qualitative impact on improving the social status of citizens.
"The announced initiatives are of decisive importance for raising the social status, the standard of living of the main groups of the population of Kazakhstan. The future of the country is youth. The Head of State Nursultan Nazarbayev seeks to ensure that young people get better education, housing in the hostel," Abdiuakap Kara said.
As the President of the Choiseul Institute, the former Commissioner of the French pavilion at Expo-2017, Pascal Lorot, noted, the initiative for further gas supply in Kazakhstan will strengthen the territorial balance of energy supply in the country by expanding access to gas, thanks to the pipeline from Karaozek in Kyzylorda region (southwest of Kazakhstan) , designed to provide cities in Zhezkazgan, Karaganda, Temirtau and Astana (in the center and north-eastern part of the country).
"This project has serious social and economic aspirations. It will provide gas to 2.7 million people, improve the living conditions of the population and increase the competitiveness of economic entities, since energy costs represent a significant share of production costs," he said. This infrastructure project will attract investment, especially from international financial institutions.
Deputy Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia, Amir Muharemi, also spoke about new initiatives of Elbasy. The implementation of large-scale social programs, he said, creates favorable conditions for business cooperation between the two states. In particular, the Croatian side expresses its readiness to assist in the implementation of the first presidential initiative regarding the construction of affordable housing for the population using advanced technologies.
In general, according to A. Muharemi, "President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev again demonstrated a wise and far-sighted approach in carrying out large-scale reforms and modernization of social policy aimed at the improvement of the standard of living of every Kazakhstani."
The initiative of the President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev to expand educational grants and build student hostels will allow the country to increase the number of highly qualified personnel for the dynamically developing sectors of the economy of Kazakhstan.
This opinion was expressed by Secretary General of the Union of Teachers of Singapore, President of Educare International Consultancy, Mike Thiruman.
Mike Thiruman expressed respect for Kazakhstan's plans for the construction of new student dormitories for 75 thousand places, which will solve the problem of a shortage of student housing, will expand the university's learning experience, the outlook of students, deepen their knowledge and skills.
"Students in dormitories have more time to interact with each other, due to which they can improve the process of their education. Student dormotiries are places where you can develop social, interpersonal and communication skills, honing critical and creative thinking. Such places can serve as a social glue among university students, which develops a sense of belonging to society," the Secretary General of the Union of Teachers of Singapore summed up.
President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Suma Chakrabarti, stressed that "it is very important to have a quality education to develop the state further and accelerate this process."
A distinctive feature of innovations is scale and efficiency. This opinion is held by the researcher of Oxford University, Troy Sternberg. He believes that human capital is the basis for modernization, and investment in education is the best investment in the future.
"If you look at South Korea and Japan, the reason for their development lies in the people whose education they invested in. Kazakhstan is very rich in natural resources, at the same time you have huge human capital. You pay great attention not only to your universities, but also send students to study abroad. In a word, the great involvement of Kazakhstanis in international education, and their encouragement, will certainly bear fruit in the future," said Troy Sternberg.
Speaking about the initiatives of the President of our country, Azerbaijani experts emphasize that this way the state made an emphasis on the people of Kazakhstan and their social security. According to parliamentary deputy Elman Nasirov, the sounded mechanisms to solve the housing problem can become a model for other countries.
"The Five Initiatives of the Head of State can be considered historical. Because the current potential of the country, the current opportunities allow these projects to be implemented. The significance of these initiatives lies in the fact that people even more will believe in their future, the future of their children, and feel the care of the state. And thanks to this the people's faith in the state rises. Through expressing care for its citizens the state can achieve cohesion in society, which is reflected in all socially directed initiatives of the Kazakh state," Elman Nasirov said.
The world media continues to cover the new social initiatives of the President of Kazakhstan.
The correspondent of the portal mno.hu, Gabor Styr, in the article "Astana considers the Roosevelt’s New Deal as an example," conducts a deep and detailed analysis of the Address of the President of Kazakhstan N.Nazarbayev and tries to find the answer to the main question in his opinion: "Nursultan Nazarbayev intends to transform the Central Asian state in a social paradise, but the question is, how much can this be real?”
"It is still premature to talk about the results of the reforms. In turn, the Kazakh media compare these changes with the US President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal, implemented between 1933 and 1939 ... .What can be said about this? In Astana they can think big," the author of the article noted.
Portal politforumi.com writes that in the space of the former Soviet Union there are still examples not of only endless problems, lag and tensions, but also examples of success. Kazakhstan is such an example, which achieved impressive successes in the economy and the construction of a modern state. Kazakhstan personifies the successful synthesis of the socialist and capitalist system, allowing the free economy to develop under conditions of state regulation.
Correspondent of the portal, Gulbaat Rtskhiladze, in the article "In the center of attention of the state is a person" notes that in Kazakhstan, unlike many post-Soviet countries, and other countries too, a person is in the center of attention.
"These are not beautiful words, President Nazarbayev proves his new social initiative consisting of five points. The Five Social Initiatives of the President are aimed at improving the living conditions of more than half the citizens of the country and have clearly defined horizons of implementation — until 2022," the article reads.
From the pages of the Russian edition of Novye Izvestia, Sergei Markov, a well-known Russian expert and political scientist, general director of the Institute for Political Studies commented on Nazarbaev's social initiatives.
"We can only once again welcome the next reform initiatives of the President of Kazakhstan. In general, I should note that in the post-Soviet space only two states — Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan — managed to create confidently developing economies and provide an ever-growing level of the people's welfare," S. Markov said.
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