Ablay Myrzakhmetov spoke on the main directions for improving the country's economy

During the IV Congress, the Chairman of the Board of NCE RK "Atameken" Ablay Myrzakhmetov singled out several key directions for improving the country's economy. "The head of state set tasks for the third modernization. According to the survey of entrepreneurs during our trips, we collected opinions of industry entrepreneurs and identified 5 areas that we consider important for achieving this goal and improving the business environment: the first is macroeconomic stability. The second task is to reduce the state's share in the economy. The third task is a step-by-step transition to horizontal measures of state support. The fourth is business-oriented regulation and the fifth is to increase the competitiveness of an enterprise", - said the Chairman of the Board of NCE RK "Atameken" Ablay Myrzakhmetov. The head of the Board spoke about the indicators of small and medium-sized businesses in GDP. "According to preliminary data for 2016, the share of SMEs in GDP fell to 23% (2015 - 25%). On this indicator, it should be noted that there remain questions on the methodology for calculating the share of small and medium-sized businesses in GDP. Currently, only one indicator is used for statistics purposes: the number of employees (up to 250 people) ", - began Ablay Myrzakhmetov. Thus, the number of SMEs includes the subjects of the quasi- government sector, and certain large commodity companies. "In January-December 2016, compared to January-December 2015, the output of SMEs (for comparable purposes) decreased by almost 6%, the number of operating entities decreased by 4.5% (about 56 thousand subjects). Such statistics show that SMEs are in difficult conditions", - Ablay Myrzakhmetov said. The speaker noted that in order to achieve sustainable long-term economic growth, the emphasis should be on creating the most favorable conditions for business. "At the same time, we see growth in business activity in 2017, in 1 quarter GDP growth reached almost 3.5%. But we understand that the main driver of such growth is the commodity sector and large enterprises. I am sure that in order to achieve sustainable long-term economic growth, the focus should be on creating the most favorable conditions for SMEs", - the Chairman of the Board added. Ablay Myrzakhmetov noted the problem of access to finance. "Access to finance is a serious problem for business. Despite the fact that the National Bank is gradually reducing the base rate (now - about 11%), loans remain expensive. An important component of the fight against inflation is the tariff policy, which is carried out by the Government. In turn, the National Bank should be responsible not only for inflation, but also for economic growth, thereby helping the Government. In this regard, to ensure the availability of credit, it is necessary to further reduce the base rate", - said the Chairman of the Board. Another serious issue is tax policy. "The tax reform should proceed from the condition of avoiding the growth of the tax burden, as instructed by the Head of State. Currently, the tax policy is focused on the implementation of fiscal functions. We understand that the state must fulfill its social obligations, and for this, stable budget revenues are needed. At the same time, it is necessary to start discussing the issue of shifting the focus of tax policy to stimulating business activity, stimulating industry incentives through preferences, etc. ", - the speaker believes. The head of the Board also touched upon the issue of a gradual transition to "horizontal" measures of state support. "Systemic problems with access to finance, high costs in a number of industries lead to the state having to subsidize business. In 2016, more than 400 billion tenge were allocated from the state budget for subsidies. We all know that subsidies for RMB-2020 and subsidies in the agro-industrial complex are the main ones for business. We understand that coverage by such measures is small. And such support is not enjoyed by all SMEs, which are almost 1.2 million", - Ablay Myrzakhmetov said. The speaker stressed that for most entrepreneurs "horizontal" measures are important: low tax burden; available loans; high-quality infrastructure; access to foreign markets; access to advanced knowledge and technology. The head of the Board believes that even within the framework of already existing programs, it is possible to significantly expand the inclusiveness of state support measures by redistributing budget funds between separate areas. For example, in the framework of RMB, the construction of infrastructure to one facility can significantly limit the ability to subsidize dozens of enterprises. Targeted support should focus on measures of competitiveness programs in priority sectors in exchange for counter demands for technological modernization.