Astana, 28 October. In his address, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev instructed the government to draw up an Infrastructure Modernisation Plan and allocate about 6.5 trillion tenge to it from the National Fund by the end of 2029, and to set aside another 1.5 trillion tenge to launch social projects this year and in the first two months of 2027, Akorda reported; he proposed calling the building drive "Khalyqtyq Qurylys", or "People's Construction", and declaring next year the Year of Nationwide Large-Scale Construction.
What is known about the plan so far: about 70 healthcare facilities will be built in the regions and construction of about 50 education, sports and culture facilities will begin; the first stage includes eight perinatal centres, seven multi-specialty children's hospitals in Atyrau, Aktobe, Almaty, Shymkent, Kaskelen, Semey and Aktau, and two medical facilities in Astana. Substantial funds will go to housing and utilities, and gas and drinking water will be brought to villages; the government must prepare an initial list of projects for all regions by the end of the year.
The President set conditions. Imports must not be financed from the National Fund: building materials, metal structures and engineering equipment for large projects should be produced in Kazakhstan, and such production should become the backbone of the programme. Local small and medium-sized businesses are to be involved as contractors, and state money, in the President's words, should guarantee private investment rather than replace it. Construction will be closely monitored; the President told the state apparatus to select projects carefully, work with reliable companies and supervise every stage.
The President justified the scale of spending by the size of the economy: gold and foreign currency reserves together with National Fund assets exceed $130bn, and GDP is forecast by the IMF to approach $400bn. At the National Bank rate, 6.5 trillion tenge is about $14.2bn, Sputnik Kazakhstan calculated. How the money will be divided by year, region and sector will become clear from the government's plan.
What it means: "People's Construction" is a bet on turning National Fund savings into hospitals, schools, roads, gas and water, built by Kazakh producers and contractors. The government must present the project list and the allocation of funds by the end of the year.
Who benefits: Residents of regions that will get hospitals, schools and utilities. Kazakh producers of building materials and equipment, and local small and medium-sized businesses, which gain access to large contracts. Meanwhile the National Fund spends savings intended also for future generations; the President insisted on a balance between saving and spending.
Background: Kazakhstan's National Fund accumulates oil and gas revenue, from which annual transfers are made to the national budget. Oil and gas sector payments to the budget in the first nine months of 2026 amounted to 6.17 trillion tenge.
We have also reported that the oil and gas sector paid 6.17 trillion tenge into the budget in nine months.
