In the Majilis, issues of improving the financing system of the agricultural sector and the creation of an Agrobank were discussed

The meeting, chaired by the head of the Committee on Agrarian Issues Serik Yegizbayev, was attended by deputies of the Majilis and the Senate, leaders of the ministries of agriculture, national economy, finance, trade and integration, the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market, the National Bank, the quasi-public sector, representatives of regional akimats, public associations, experts, and agricultural producers. Preceding the discussion, Serik Yegizbayev informed that the current financing volumes for entities of the agro-industrial complex (AIC) through the "Agrarian Credit Corporation" and "KazAgroFinance" organizations amount to just over 460 billion tenge. This is only 18.4% of the total need of 2.5 trillion tenge. - The share of agriculture in the total loan portfolio of second-tier banks this year is only 2.3%. At the same time, the volume of loans in trade accounts for 48.3%. Comments, as they say, are superfluous. Credit resources for most farmers are inaccessible. The main reason is the lack of liquid collateral, high requirements of financial organizations for borrowers, – shared the committee chairman. Serik Yegizbayev noted that the task of the "round table" is to develop new mechanisms for increasing the accessibility of credit resources for small and medium-sized farmers, attracting second-tier banks, private leasing companies, credit cooperatives, and microfinance organizations to finance the industry. There is also a proposal for the creation of a specialized Agrarian Bank, which has been repeatedly mentioned by agricultural producers and supported by deputies. Speaking to parliamentarians, Deputy Minister of Agriculture Yerbol Taszhurekov reported that, in addition to the annual allocation of financing for agrarians for spring field and harvesting works, measures are being taken to introduce new approaches in lending to AIC entities. - By the order of the Head of State, work has begun on scaling up the project to increase the income of the rural population "Aul amanaty". This year, 100 billion tenge has been allocated with a plan to issue more than 17 thousand microcredits. Simultaneously, work is being carried out to replicate the successful experience of the North Kazakhstan region in implementing large industrial investment projects in the AIC. The loan terms are maximally preferential. This year, 100 billion tenge is planned to be allocated for these purposes, through which the construction of 65 dairy farms will be financed, – said the deputy head of the Ministry of Agriculture. However, Yerbol Taszhurekov noted that the creation of an Agrobank does not comply with the legislation on banking activity. This was also emphasized in his report by the Deputy Chairman of the National Bank, Vitaliy Tutushkin. In turn, Majilis deputy Anas Bakkazhayev spoke in favor of creating an Agrobank, explaining that it would work in the interests of agrarians, providing them with cheap loans at the level of 2.5-3%. - What does Agrobank solve? First, we are not saying that only the state should be the founder of this Agrarian Bank. Farmers themselves, entrepreneurs can be co-founders, shareholders of this bank. Thus, the concept itself changes. The bank will solve a social issue. Farmers work in regions, they need working capital, they must produce cheap agricultural products, and this we must stimulate, – emphasized the majilis member. Thus, according to him, farmers will manage Agrobank themselves, similar to credit cooperatives, and be in its system. Agricultural producers supported the deputy. They note that, if Agrobank were operational today, it could have resolved the problems caused by weather conditions this year more quickly and efficiently. Their opinion was also expressed by the director of the "Talap" Center for Applied Research, Rakim Oshakbayev, expert Kanat Zhaumbayev, parliamentarians, and other participants of the meeting. The proposals heard will be summarized, and based on them, relevant recommendations will be prepared, which the Committee on Agrarian Issues will send to the Government. - We see that the current model of financing the agricultural sector requires improvement, as it does not meet the needs of farmers in credit resources. In particular, it is necessary to significantly increase the volumes of financing, soften the terms of lending and collateral policy, massively involve AIC entities in the insurance system, as projects in agriculture have long payback periods and high risks, – concluded the discussion Serik Yegizbayev. Press service of the Majilis - 24-38-22.