From March 16 to May 11, 2020, a state of emergency was introduced in the republic, after which the country went under lockdown due to the COVID-19 virus.
According to the Ministry of Finance, as a result of the pandemic, the budget deficit increased from 1.9% of GDP in 2019 to 3.1% of GDP (2.2 trillion tenge). This figure is expected to be 3.4% of GDP or 2.6 trillion tenge in 2021. However, the Ministry of National Economy noted that the service sector decreased by 5.6% as a result of the pandemic and measures to limit the spread of coronavirus. In monetary terms, a significant decrease is observed in trade and transport. According to the Bureau of National Statistics, the gross value added of trade decreased by 187.5 billion tenge in 2020. Transport GVA decreased by 726.8 billion tenge.
However, the volume of passenger transportation reduced by 64.8% to 8.4 billion people. The income dropped to 287.7 million tenge. In particular, the income of air carriers from passenger traffic decreased by 51.6%, to 176.1 billion tenge.
The Ministry of National Economy, however, noted that the production of goods increased by 2% in 2020. Construction grew by 11.2%, agriculture - by 5.6%, manufacturing industry - by 3.9%. According to the ministry, three packages of anti-crisis measures such as urgent measures population and business support and socio-economic sustainability maintenance and a Comprehensive Plan to Restore Economic Growth were implemented in 2020.
The total amount of funding amounted to 6.3 trillion tenge. As a result, 700 thousand entrepreneurs got tax exemptions, 80% of borrowers from affected industries took advantage of loan deferrals. About 40 thousand projects were financed. Employment promotion reached about 1.4 million people, due to which, the rate of unemployment remained within 5%.
A new system of state planning is now being developed. It will focus on restart of the package of systemic reforms, change of the state role and reset of key government policies.
A national development plan for Kazakhstan by 2025 has also been developed, and is to become a new socio-economic course for the country's development. A set of measures will also be adopted to support the business activity of small and medium-sized businesses in the new conditions in the near future.
Source: https://lsm.kz/god-s-covid-19-kak-ekonomika-kazahstana-perezhivaet-pandemiyu
Photos are from open sources.
