WT/GC /194   
 
2 October 2018  
(18-6052) Page: 1/2 
General Council  Original: English  
 
ADVANCING THE INTEGR ATION OF EURASIA INT O THE GLOBAL ECONOMY   
THROUGH TRADE AND IN VESTMENT FACILITATIO N FOR DEVELOPMENT  
ASTANA STATEMENT  
COMMUNICATION FROM K AZAKHSTAN  
The following communication, dated 1 October 2018, is being circulated at the request of  the 
delegation of Kazakhstan.  
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1.1.  The Government of Kazakhstan, in partnership with the WTO Friends of Investment Facilitation 
for Development (FIFD),1 hosted a High-Level Forum on Advancing Trade and Investment Facilitation 
for Development:  A Eurasian Perspective , in Astana, Kazakhstan on 28 September 2018. The Forum 
was opened by H.E. Mr. Bakytzhan Sagintayev, Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan. 
Mr. Roberto Azevêdo, Director -General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) delivered a keynote 
address.  
1.2.  The Astana High -Level Forum gathered Ministers and senior trade and investment policy -
makers from 30 countries from the Eurasian region and beyond, as well as senior business leaders 
and representatives from relevant international organ izations  (ADB, EBRD, ITC, OECD, UNESCAP  
and World Bank) . The discussions focused on the role of investment in fostering development, 
modernization and growth and how investment facilitation policies and measures can help Eurasian 
countries to attract and r etain more investment, improve productivity, increase and diversify 
exports, advance digital connectivity, and deepen integration into the global economy.  
1.3.  The High -Level Forum met at a time of critical challenges, as well as enormous opportunities 
in the Eurasian region. After a period of steady growth, the region's prospects for future prosperity 
and sustained trade and investment expansion rely on economic diversification, intra -regional 
connectivity and investment climate reform. Despite the challenges faced by many landlocked 
Eurasian countries, including with regard to the transit of goods, they are increasingly regarded as 
an attractive foreign direct investment (FDI) destination given countries' human and physical capital, 
as well as rich natural res ources, coupled with recent reforms undertaken both at the national and 
regional levels. FDI was highlighted as an essential factor to promote the expansion of innovative 
manufacturing and services sectors as well as the development of the digital economy,  thus enabling 
these economies to upgrade and diversify their production capabilities and better integrate into 
global value chains (GVCs).  
1.4.  Recalling the Joint Ministerial Statement on Investment Facilitation for Development co -
sponsored by 70 Members at the Eleventh WTO Ministerial Conference in Buenos Aires,2 which calls 
for structured discussions towards a multilateral framework on investment facilitation for 
development and recognizes the importance of continuous outreach to WTO Members through 
multila teral and regional activities to learn more about Members' investment facilitation priorities 
and needs,  participants from the wider Eurasian region explored how a multilateral framework could 
                                                
1 The Friends of Investment Facilitation for Development comprise the following 17 WTO developing and 
least-developed country Members: Argentina; Brazil; Chile; China; Colombia; Gambia; Guatemala; Hong Kong, 
China; Kazakhstan; Republic of Kor ea; Liberia; Mauritania; Mexico; Nigeria; Pakistan; Qatar; and Uruguay.  
2 Joint Ministerial Statement on Investment Facilitation for Development dated 13 December 2017 
(WT/MIN(17)/59).  WT/GC /194  
 
- 2 - 
 
  help to address them. They also reaffirmed the relevance of the  Abuja Statement on "Deepening 
Africa's Integration in the Global Economy through Trade and Investment Facilitation for 
Development".3 
1.5.  Participants reaffirmed that trade and investment are indispensable 'twin engines' of economic 
growth in Eurasia and note d that a coherent and coordinated approach to trade and investment 
policies was key to creating an environment conducive to scaling up investment, thus serving their 
national development strategies and helping developing countries mobilize the estimated ad ditional 
US$2.5 trillion needed annually to  bridge the investment gap to meet the 2030 Sustainable 
Development Goals.  
1.6.  Participants shared experiences from both business and government perspectives regarding 
ongoing efforts in the region and recognized that  significant progress has been made to implement 
investment facilitation measures such as one -stop shops and information portals.  Participants noted 
that governments faced challenges such as the lack of adequate infrastructure, institutional and 
financial  resources, as well as inadequate inter -agency coordination, and that much remained to be 
done to cut red -tape and improve government -investor relationships so as to create a policy 
environment favourable to FDI, start -ups and MSMEs.  
1.7.  Inspired by the succes s of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement, participants from the wider 
Eurasian region welcomed the WTO Members' efforts to facilitate investment through a multilateral 
framework that would contribute to creating a more transparent, predictable, efficient and dynamic 
environment for FDI. They acknowledged that a multilateral framework would also add value to 
national and regional efforts by promoting best practices, creating clear global benchmarks and 
sending a positive signal to investors. Recalling that a core objective of the framework should be to 
facilitate greater developing and least -developed Members' participation in global investment flows, 
they noted that such a framework would serve as a catalyst for mobilizing the technical assistance 
and capac ity building required by developing countries to implement and further benefit from 
investment facilitation reforms. Acknowledging the progress made thus far, participants from the 
region reiterated their support to the ongoing Structured Discussions on In vestment Facilitation for 
Development among participating WTO Members, and considered that outreach activities such as, 
but not limited to, High -Level Forums, could greatly contribute to and inform those structured 
discussions.  
1.8.  Participants encouraged the  WTO to continue to cooperate closely with other relevant 
international organizations, such as the ITC, the OECD, UNCTAD, and the World Bank, as well as 
with regional organizations, with a view to addressing countries' identified needs, while also 
explorin g the possibility of engaging with the private sector with the aim of delivering win -win 
outcomes for host countries and investors alike.  
1.9.  Participants thanked the Government of Kazakhstan for hosting this High-Level Forum on 
Advancing Trade and Investment Facilitation for Development: A Eurasian Perspective , and 
expressed their appreciation for the high quality of the event. As a follow -up to the Forum, a number 
of WTO Members from the Eurasian region expressed their willingness to participate and actively 
engage in the structured discussions on investment facilitation for development in the WTO.  
1.10.   The High -Level Forum requested the Government of Kazakhstan to circulate this Astana 
Statement to all WTO Members.  
 
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3 The first regional High-Level Policy and Private Sector Trade and Investment Facilitation Forum co -
hosted by Nigeria and the ECOWAS Commission in partnership with FIFD, was held in Abuja, Nigeria, on 2 and 
3 Nove mber 2017. As the outcome of this  Forum, the Abuja Statement on  "Deepening Africa's Integration in 
the Global Economy Through Trade and Investment Facilitation for Development"  was adopted and circulated 
to all WTO Members in document WT/MIN(17)/4 and WT/GC/186.