Kazakhstan is developing a package of social measures aimed at attracting and retaining personnel in the livestock industry, including a proposal to lower the retirement age for shepherds and herders.
The initiative was discussed during a meeting of the Public Council under the Ministry of Agriculture, which reviewed the draft Comprehensive Plan for the Development of Agribusiness in the Livestock Sector for 2026-2030. The plan is designed to increase production, improve productivity, and enhance the sector’s export potential.
A key focus of the draft is addressing staffing shortages in rural livestock farming, which the ministry has identified as a systemic challenge.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, the proposed support measures include reducing the retirement age for shepherds and herders, providing deferrals from military service, and prioritizing educational grants for their children. Specific retirement age parameters have not yet been disclosed. Currently, men in Kazakhstan retire at 63 and women at 61, with a gradual equalization planned from 2031.
At present, certain groups, including mothers of large families, workers in hazardous occupations, military personnel, law enforcement officers, and victims of nuclear testing, are eligible for early retirement.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture Amangali Berdalin also announced plans to launch long-term preferential loans at 6% per annum for the purchase of breeding stock for all types of farm animals.
Additionally, 5% interest loans are planned to support working capital without sector-specific limitations. These funds can be used for purchasing feed, fuel and lubricants, veterinary drugs, and covering other ongoing production expenses.
To reactivate underused pastures, a unified loan product at 6% is being developed to support transhumance livestock farming. All loan programs will be backed by state guarantees.
The expansion of social and financial support for livestock farming comes amid rising export performance in the industry. As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia, Kazakh meat producers exported more products in the first ten months of 2025 than in all of 2024.
