It's no secret that the developed business sector is one of the main locomotives for the growth of the economy of any state. The experience of the most competitive countries from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is one more confirmation of this.

 

As for Kazakhstan, in the last ten years the number of small and medium businesses in the country has almost doubled. As a result, the share of SMEs in the total number of economic entities has significantly increased and remains at a high level.

For the establishment of SMEs as one of the main drivers of the economy, the Government systematically works to reduce costs and administrative barriers to business.

Over the years, a number of draft laws aimed at improving the business environment have been adopted, and on October 3, the draft law "On Amendments and Additions to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Improving Business Regulation" was presented, which was the fifth amendment to legislation regulating the business environment.

The bill was developed in the following main areas:

• reform of state control and supervision activities;

• reform of permits issued by monopolists and subjects of the quasi-public sector;

• development of the institute of self-regulation;

• identification and exclusion of norms that hinder competition;

• frontal decrease in business costs;

• improving the mechanisms for identifying and suppressing price and tariff collusion;

• development of business support measures;

• improvement of Kazakhstan's position in the Doing Business ranking.

In total, the bill introduces about 1000 amendments to 13 codes and 103 laws.

One of the main innovations of the bill is the introduction of preventive control. Such a reform should radically change the mentality and behavior of the inspection bodies in the policy of "prevention and control" of the offense, without the initiation of administrative proceedings, instead of the current policy of "detection and punishment".

In this connection, it is proposed to exclude a number of spheres from state control and supervision in connection with their duplication, exclude duplicate and non-risk threats to the state and the consumer, and reduce the requirements for verification of business entities.

As a result of the implementation of measures, the total number of inspections by 2018 will be reduced by 30% and will not exceed 70 thousand, and by 2020 – will be reduced by another 10%.

Also, one of the most significant loads on business is a large number of information requirements. Based on the results of the inventory, more than 1,600 such business requirements have been identified, many of which are duplicated with monitoring functions or with forms of state statistical reporting. In order to reform the information tools, it is planned to reduce their number by 30% and consolidate everything in the final list.

In addition, within the framework of the new draft law, work will be more actively carried out to further optimize and simplify the licensing system for business. In 2016, a reform was carried out on a 50% reduction of permits, resulting in their number from 708 brought to 316. To continue this work, it is proposed to make appropriate changes and additions to the law "On Permits and Notifications".

In order to further develop the institution of self-regulation introduced in 2016, amendments are proposed for additional incentive measures. To date, voluntary self-regulation is practiced in the areas of bookmaking, environmental auditing, tax advice, fire safety.

The introduction of mandatory self-regulation in the areas of valuation activities and environmental auditing activities has already been worked out and amendments are included in the draft laws for the current year.

In addition, this issue is being addressed in six potential areas (assessment, notarial, advocacy, audit activities, environmental auditing, and non-departmental complex expertise of construction projects).

In addition, the bill contains a block of amendments aimed at frontal reduction of business costs.

The most cardinal ones are connected with obtaining technical conditions for connecting natural monopoly entities to engineering networks, reducing the rates of certain taxes and fees, and observing the requirements of environmental legislation. In addition, cost reduction will affect such areas as technical regulation, construction, public procurement. In general, it was noted that work aimed at reducing business costs will continue on a systematic basis.

Also, in order to create a favorable competitive environment, the draft law proposes a number of amendments aimed at eliminating the norms that impede competition identified in the framework of the audited legislation.

In addition, as part of the continuation of the systematic work to improve the business climate in the country and the position of Kazakhstan in the Doing Business rating of the World Bank, the draft law provides for a number of reforms on seven indicators of the Doing Business ranking out of ten. Among them: "Opening of enterprises", "Contract execution", "Construction permit", "Protection of minority investors", "Resolving insolvency", "Getting credit", "Registration of property".

In addition, as part of the continuation of the systematic work to improve the business climate in the country and the position of Kazakhstan in the Doing Business rating of the World Bank, the draft law provides for a number of reforms on seven indicators of the Doing Business ranking out of ten. Among them: "Opening of enterprises", "Contract execution", "Construction permit", "Protection of minority investors", "Resolving insolvency", "Getting credit", "Registration of property".

In general, all the work will be aimed at creating more comfortable conditions for doing business in Kazakhstan, which, in the long run, will give entrepreneurship a more mass character, as it was stated in the instructions of the Head of State.

• 
• 
• 
•