The 19th session of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technical, and Cultural Cooperation between Kazakhstan and Iran took place in Tehran, TuraNews.kz reports Primeminister.kz.
Representatives from the ministries and state enterprises of both nations participated in the event, co-chaired by Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister, Serik Zhumangarin, and Iran’s Minister of Agriculture, Mohammad Ali Nikbakht.
During the commission meeting, the two parties acknowledged the successful growth of interstate relations across various sectors, including trade, agriculture, logistics, energy, healthcare, education, and tourism.
Deputy Prime Minister Serik Zhumangarin highlighted the directive from the heads of both states to elevate the mutual trade turnover to $3 billion. “The initial step towards achieving this goal will be the signing of an Action Plan, which encompasses supporting exporting enterprises through measures like increasing mutual trade volume, lifting trade restrictions, and implementing a bilateral clearing mechanism,” stated the vice-president. He added that Kazakh companies are keen on ensuring continuous exports of non-commodity goods to the Iranian market.
Manufacturers are prepared to provide Iranian consumers with goods across 75 product categories, totaling approximately $250 million.
The progress made by the countries in finalizing a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement between the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) member states and Iran was positively assessed during the meeting.
Iran’s Minister of Agriculture, Mohammad Ali Nikbakht, indicated that Iranian enterprises could supply Kazakhstan with fish and dairy products, honey, fruits and vegetables, herbs, dried fruits, and other food items. The Iranian side also expressed interest in Kazakh investments and willingness to offer special conditions for business activities in Iran’s free economic zones.
The Intergovernmental Commission also discussed the expansion of transport and logistics cooperation, particularly in the development of international North-South transport corridors, where the Caspian hub could play a pivotal role.
At the conclusion of the plenary meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Serik Zhumangarin and Minister of Agriculture Mohammad Ali Nikbakht signed the Protocol of the 19th Joint Intergovernmental Commission and the Action Plan aimed at achieving a $3 billion trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Iran.
Additionally, following the commission session, agreements were signed in the fields of agriculture and metrology:
Memorandum of cooperation in veterinary medicine between the Ministries of Agriculture of Kazakhstan and Iran.
Memorandum of understanding in metrology between the Kazakhstan Institute of Standardization and
Metrology and the National Metrology Center of the Iranian National Organization for Standardization.
During his working visit to Tehran, Deputy Prime Minister Serik Zhumangarin engaged with leading Iranian businessmen in sectors such as agriculture, housing and communal services, investment, mining and metals industry, as well as industry and transport.
