Foreword

The purpose of this report is to describe and evaluate the corporate governance framework of the Kazakh state-owned enterprise sector against the OECD Guidelines on Corporate Governance of State-Owned Enterprises (the “SOE Guidelines”). It was discussed by the OECD Working Party on State Ownership and Privatisation Practices' (the “Working Party”), the body responsible for overseeing the effective implementation of the SOE Guidelines, at its meetings in April and October 2023.

Since their inception in 2005, the SOE Guidelines have provided concrete advice to countries on how to manage more effectively their responsibilities as enterprise owners, thus helping to make state-owned enterprises more competitive, efficient and transparent. They complement and are compatible with the G20/OECD Principles of Corporate Governance and the OECD Anti-Corruption and Integrity Guidelines for State-Owned Enterprises.

This report was prepared at the request of the Republic of Kazakhstan to support its objective of strengthening its ownership and governance framework for SOEs. It falls under a project which commenced with its first phase in 2022, and included three knowledge sharing seminars, organised by the OECD Secretariat, with the purpose of creating a better joint understanding of international best practices and their application in Kazakhstan. In a second information gathering phase, the OECD Secretariat collected information including from a questionnaire submitted to the Kazakh authorities. The report is further enriched from information gathered from two fact-finding missions to Astana undertaken in February and September 2023 including meetings with government officials, representatives of civil society, business organisations, and SOEs, and additional desk research and information gathered from subsequent interaction with the Ministry of National Economy and other relevant authorities.

In parallel with developing this Review, the OECD also provided technical assistance to Kazakhstan’s on-going legislative reform aimed at amending the Law on State Property, for which consideration by Parliament is expected in 2024. The new Law – if and when put in place – may address some of the recommendations identified by this report.

This report is structured into three main parts. Chapter 1 provides background information on the Kazakh SOE sector, including the applicable legal and regulatory framework; Chapter 2 provides an assessment of Kazakhstan’s existent legislation relative to the standards of the SOE Guidelines. The final chapter provides conclusions and recommendations for improving the corporate governance framework applicable to Kazakh SOEs.

The report was drafted by Talisa zur Hausen and Karoline Irmscher of the OECD Capital Markets and Financial Institutions Division, and Lazzat Borankulova (OECD local consultant). Meral Gedik and Greta Gabbarini provided editorial support and prepared the report for publication.