Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Kanat Bozumbayev recently concluded a series of high-level meetings in Germany to discuss and agree upon new collaborative projects.
The visit included discussions with key German officials, including Jens Brandenburg, Parliamentary State Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research; Claudia Müller, Parliamentary State Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture; Boris Greifeneder, Managing Director of the German Water Partnership; Holger Fabig, Head of the National and International Economic Policy Group at the Federal Chancellery; and Susanne Buiter, Scientific Director of the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ).
One of the primary topics discussed was the potential for joint training of professionals in the water management sector. Brandenburg indicated Germany’s willingness to partner with Kazakhstan’s new National University of Water Management and Irrigation in Taraz.
Bozumbayev also explored opportunities for Kazakhstani agro-industrial and organic products to enter the German market with Müller. Germany remains a significant agricultural partner for Kazakhstan, and the countries agreed to work on the Concept of the Regional Center for Sustainable Agriculture in Central Asia. This initiative was initially introduced by Kazakhstan’s President during his visit to Germany in September 2023.
Further discussions were held with Boris Greifeneder from the German Water Partnership, which represents over 300 German water industry companies. An agreement was reached to draft a Global Agreement on Water Partnership to advance sustainable and efficient water management in Kazakhstan.
At the round table discussion titled “Water for Sustainable Development,” Bozumbayev highlighted the need for innovative approaches to address recent severe floods in Kazakhstan. He noted the ongoing testing of the German digital flood forecasting solution “Talsim” and expressed interest in learning from German flood management experiences.
The visit also included meetings with Holger Fabig, where the focus was on industrial and raw material cooperation, including the creation of a German-Kazakh consortium for joint raw material projects. Bozumbayev emphasized the benefits of increasing local raw material processing.
Finally, discussions with Susanne Buiter covered the study of Kazakhstan’s underground water resources, with ongoing cooperation between “Kazhydromet” and GFZ under the Berlin process and the “Green Central Asia” initiative.
The visit culminated in the signing of several key documents, including:
- A Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Agriculture of Kazakhstan and the Independent Institute for Environmental Problems (Germany).
- A Memorandum between the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation of Kazakhstan and the German Water Partnership.
- A Memorandum between the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation of Kazakhstan and INNARI Innovative Nature Irrigation LLC.
- A Memorandum between the Kazakh Research Institute of Water Management and the Independent Institute for Environmental Problems (Germany).
