The experts discussed problems of import substitution in the construction sector were at a joint meeting of the committees of the manufacturing industry, construction and housing, and communal services.

Opening the meeting, the Chairman of the Committee of Construction and Housing of the Presidium of the Atameken NCE RK Alexander Belovich informed the meeting participants that the authorized body proposed a number of legislative amendments to increase the share of Kazakhstani content in construction, in particular:

- to oblige customers and contractors to apply domestic manufacturers’ products in the construction of objects at the expense of the budget;

-  introduce administrative responsibility for failure to specify requirements for the application of domestic manufacturers’ products, as well as for unreasonable coordination of their substitution by imported ones.

- to form collections of estimated prices exclusively on the basis of the domestic manufacturers’ information.

The joint meeting of the branch committees of the Atameken Presidium has been organized to discuss the above-mentioned initiatives.

The idea to gather producers and developers at one table was positively received by all participants of the meeting, as the problems in the industries are similar.

"It is impossible to solve the problems of one industry at the expense of another. We understand that we all try to develop the economy of Kazakhstan, and we understand that along this path we should go together and look for ways to develop without building additional barriers for each other. In Kazakhstan, we do not have everything that is needed for construction, but nevertheless, it is definitely necessary to work in this direction," Vladimir Bobrov, Chairman of the Committee of Manufacturing Industry, addressed the construction business on behalf of manufacturers.

 "Construction has always been the engine of production in any country, The speed and quantity of your construction will determine the way we develop. We will adapt to you and manufacture the products you need," Nurzhan Kenzhebaev, President of the Union of Elevators, said.

 At the same time, he drew the attention of the meeting participants to the fact that the state always supports the construction and allocates huge amounts of money for it to develop, and it would be fair if constructors supported manufacturers. 

In turn, Alexander Belovich agreed with the need to support domestic manufacturers:

"We support the idea of developing Kazakhstan's market of construction materials, and it would be more convenient for us, the constructors, if we bought all the materials in our country, rather than imported them.

At the same time, he noted that the government, while financing the construction, limits the builders:

1) by the cost per square meter;

2) according to estimates for construction materials, wages, machines, and mechanisms, etc.

There are risks both for customers/contractors of construction and producers of construction materials.

In general, all participants of the meeting noted that state support measures are not eternal and that any programs sooner or later will end, and the production, which should be created for their implementation, should be competitive to continue its existence in the market without the assistance of the state. Continuing the theme, the Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Atameken NCE RK Yuliya Yakupbaeva expressed the previously proposed idea of creating a Register of suppliers of construction materials and services.

"The lack of complete information about all manufacturers of construction products is a significant obstacle to the use of domestic products in construction," Yuliya Yakupbaeva said.

"The world is run by someone who has information, our common task is to establish an active information exchange, we need to know clearly what you need and you know what we can do. We think we can solve this if we combine the issues of issuance of industrial certificates and the formation of an industrial information system. If you give us information about your needs, we will find a common language," Pavel Beklemishev, Deputy Chairman of the Committee of Mechanical Engineering and Metalworking, said.

In turn, Alexander Belovich proposed to provide the Committee of the processing industry with information on the needs of construction materials for the construction of 1 square meter of housing (office, social facilities) to calculate the required amount of construction materials for the relevant area of the objects.

As a result, the participants agreed to create a Working Subgroup with the inclusion of representatives of the three committees. Within a month, the experts should work out proposals and develop a Roadmap. The issue of making changes to the legislation will be considered again after the analysis of opportunities of the market of domestic producers to meet the needs of construction materials.