Kazakhstan in a hurry to develop'

Central Asia's largest and richest economy, which enjoys growth of close to 10 per cent, beckons Singapore firms

Bhagyashree Garekar - Oct 16, 2004
The Straits Times

IT WAS a small detail, but it spoke volumes to a Singaporean entrepreneur exploring opportunities in Kazakhstan.

When Mr Douglas Foo, the chief executive of Apex-Pal International which owns restaurant chains such as Sakae Sushi, landed at Kazakhstan's commercial capital Almaty last month, immigration forms seemed scarce.

Passengers were beginning to fret when an official emerged to tell them no such forms were needed to enter his country.

To Mr Foo, that defined Kazakhstan as a nation in a hurry to develop itself and willing to discard the 'done' way of doing things.

'Most countries insist that passengers fill up a form on arrival, it's a duplication of effort when that information has already been given to the authorities while applying for a visa.

'Kazakhstan did away with unnecessary paperwork. That struck me as a telling sign.'

A country as large as western Europe, Kazakhstan has vast mineral resources and considerable economic potential.

It is Central Asia's largest economy and richest country, with a growth rate approaching 10 per cent in recent years.

Its location makes it an ideal gateway to the huge European markets as well as to western China, the Middle East and other Central Asian nations.

All these translate into excellent business opportunities in a variety of industries, according to the Singapore Manufacturers Federation.

A delegation of Singapore firms was in Kazakhstan last month to sniff out those opportunities. Mr Foo, who led that team of 18 companies on a week-long mission, said he saw a sense of urgency for nation-building in the country's young leaders, mostly in their 40s and 50s and educated overseas.

Actively seeking investment, Kazakhstan was part of a delegation representing eastern Europe and Central Asia that visited Singapore last week to woo local businesses to venture into their markets.

Areas of promise, according to Ms Aw Siew Juan, director of International Operations (Europe) at International Enterprise Singapore, are engineering and refining, supply of bases and equipment to the oil and gas industry, shipyard repair, industrial park development and environmental technologies. Singapore's ties with Kazakhstan stretch back to more than a decade, with a trip by then Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew to the country in 1991.

In more recent times, former Minister for Trade and Industry George Yeo led a business mission in July last year to promote Singapore as an export services and sourcing hub for Kazakh companies.

A few months later, Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev arrived in Singapore to sign a bilateral pact.

Mr Kelvin Lee, a Singaporean who spent a couple of years in Almaty in the 1990s, said his experience was an eye-opener.

'I was once invited to dinner by a friend. The dish that night was lasagne. Not much was available in the local market those days and my hostess had made everything from scratch - the pasta from flour and eggs, the mince from a leg of lamb, even the ketchup.'

Times have changed since. Among the Singapore companies thriving in Kazakhstan today is Food Empire, the market leader in - instant coffee