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KABUL (TCA) — The Afghan Ministry of Finance says the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has assessed the Afghan government’s economic and monetary policies and described them as “successful”, Afghan broadcaster TOLOnews reported.
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ASTANA (TCA) — On December 11 in Astana, Kazakhstan’s First Deputy Prime Minister Askar Mamin attended the signing of an investment agreement on sharing the capital (51%) of the largest Kazakhstani automobile manufacturer SaryarkaAvtoProm with Chinese transnational state company China National Machinery IMP & EXP CORP (a member of Genertec), the official website of the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan reported.
Askar Mamin noted that this is a strategic project for the domestic automobile industry, which will increase the pace of development of the industry and export potential to enter foreign markets. The project is an important component of the Silk Road Economic Belt program and is included in the list of Kazakhstani-Chinese cooperation in the field of industrialization and investment.
Genertec (China General Technology Group) is a Chinese state-owned conglomerate covering machine building, pharmaceuticals, engineering, construction and real estate, as well as technical consulting. The company’s annual turnover is $31 billion. Export investment portfolio is $180 billion.
China National Machinery IMP & EXP CORP is a major international designer, contractor for project management services and a service provider in the automotive industry, and is part of Genertec.
As part of the development of the joint venture, the partners plan to increase production in the industry to 100,000 cars and the level of production localization up to 50%. The development of car assembly production in Kostanay (Kazakhstan) will allow creating new jobs in the automobile industry.
Genertec Chairman Lu Yimin noted during the negotiations that the joint project will significantly deepen the localization of production, expand the brand portfolio and introduce the latest technology.
Component suppliers will be selected on the territory of Kazakhstan and the EEU, and work will continue to ensure the quality service of automobiles to consumers.
The total investment in the joint venture will be approximately $1.1 billion.
Together with the Chinese partner and investor, in the framework of the development strategy of production in 2019-2021, it is planned to produce motor vehicles under the brands JAC, ANKAI, HOWO, and HANTENG.
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TASHKENT (TCA) — The US State Department’s annual report on religious freedom, released on December 11, removed for the first time since 2006 Uzbekistan as a “Country of Particular Concern”. The State Department did, however, include Uzbekistan on a special Watch List, RFE/RL reported.
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BISHKEK (TCA) — A court in Kyrgyzstan has sentenced a man to 20 years in prison for kidnapping and killing a young woman in a case that caused public outcry in the Central Asian nation, RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz Service reported.
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KABUL (TCA) — The Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs on December 11 said Afghanistan is preparing to export the first shipment of products through the Lapis Lazuli Transit, Trade and Transport Route within the next two days, Afghan broadcaster TOLOnews reported.
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ASTANA (TCA) — An OSCE-supported seminar on assessing and managing the risks of violent extremist prisoners, including the rehabilitation of returning Foreign Terrorist Fighters, concluded in Astana last week. The two-day workshop was organized by the OSCE Programme Office in Astana together with the joint United Nations System and European Union programme on the prevention of violent extremism in prisons.
