WT/TPR/M/288  
13 January 2014  
(14-0126)  Page: 1/29  
Trade Policy Review Body 
19 and 21 November 2013   
 
  TRADE POLICY REVIEW 
KYRGYZ REPUBLIC  
MINUTES OF THE MEETING 
Chairperson: H.E. Mr. Joakim Reiter 
CONTENTS 
 
1  INTRODUCTORY REMARKS BY THE CHAI RPERSON ....................................................... 2  
2  OPENING STATEMENT BY THE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE KYRGYZ REPUBLIC ............... 4  
3  STATEMENT BY THE DISCUSSANT ................................................................................ 8  
4  STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS ........................................................................................ 11  
5  REPLIES BY THE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE KYRGYZ REPUBLIC AND 
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS ............................................................................................... 23  
6  CONCLUDING REMARKS BY THE CHAI RPERSON ......................................................... 28  
 
 
Note: Advance written questions and additional questions by WTO Members, and the replies 
provided by the Kyrgyz Republic are reproduced  in document WT/TPR/M/288/Add.1 and will be 
available online at http://www.wto.org/english/tr atop_e/tpr_e/tp_rep_e.htm . WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 2 - 
 
  1  INTRODUCTORY REMARKS BY THE CHAIRPERSON 
1.1.  The second Trade Policy Review of the Kyrgyz Republic was held on 19 and 
21 November 2013. The Chairperson H.E. Mr. Joakim Reiter (Sweden) welcomed the delegation of the Kyrgyz Republic headed by H.E. Mr. Temir Sariev, Minister of Economy; the rest of the 
delegation from Bishkek and colleagues from the Mission in Geneva; and the discussant, 
H.E. Ambassador Selim Kuneralp (Turkey). 
1.2.  The Chairperson recalled the purpose of the Tr ade Policy Reviews and the main elements of 
the procedures for the meeting. The Report by the Kyrgyz Republic was contained in document 
WT/TPR/G/288 and that of the WT O Secretariat in WT/TPR/S/288. 
1.3.  The Kyrgyz Republic adopted the alternative timeframe for its TPRB meeting. Questions by 
the following eight delegations had been submitted in writing at least four weeks in advance and 
had been transmitted to the delegation of the Ky rgyz Republic: Pakistan; Canada; the Republic of 
Korea; China; the United States; the European Union; Brazil; and Thailand. The following delegations submitted written questions after th e four-week deadline: Turkey; India; Colombia; 
and Ukraine. 
1.4.  The Chairperson recalled to delegations that this was the second Trade Policy Review for the 
Kyrgyz Republic, one of the first countries to accede to the WTO after its establishment, and the 
first CIS country to do so. The Kyrgyz Republic acceded to the WTO with very liberal trade 
concessions which it used to propel domestic reforms and open its economy to the world.   
1.5.  For the most part, reforms continued at a steady pace up to its first Trade Policy Review in 
2006 whereby the Kyrgyz Republic was commended for continuing its open trade and investment 
policies and efforts to diversify its economy. In the intervening years since its last review, reforms 
had continued but it would seem at a slower pace . The economy was relatively diversified with the 
services sector making up approximately half of GDP. GDP growth had generally been positive 
albeit fluctuating substantially as in the case of inflation. Overall there still remained 
underexploited economic potential in several sectors such as natural resources and electricity generation from hydropower, for example. Furthermore, it was noted that the trade deficit had 
widened and the export base had remained very narrow.  
1.6.  In terms of its trade policy, the Kyrgyz Repu blic had changed its direction and placed a 
priority on further regional integration; over ha lf of the Kyrgyz Republic’s trade was conducted 
with regional neighbours. One of the most si gnificant developments had been a focus on 
developing closer and deeper ties with them by pursuing accession to the customs union 
comprised of Belarus, Kazakhstan, and the Russian  Federation and the Single Economic Space. 
While trade between these countries was alread y duty-free due to a number of free trade 
agreements, there would be further integration due to adherence to a common external tariff, 
alignment of regulations and procedures, and chan ges of many of the other trade policy elements 
such as TBT, SPS, and customs rules. Indeed, this  aspect of joining the customs union and Single 
Economic Space was at the core of many of the qu estions raised by Members for this review. This 
was certainly an area where the Chairperson hoped they could have a useful dialogue during the two days of this review.  
1.7.  In addition, other important aspects were the on-going reforms and core elements of the 
Kyrgyz Republic’s trade and investment regime. An important element to help drive economic 
growth, further diversify the economy, and bring mu ch needed technologies was the attraction of 
foreign direct investment, an area in which the Kyrgyz Republic had improved but still lagged, 
especially compared to others in the region. Wh ile there had not been any significant changes to 
the investment law, Members had for this Review inquired about anticipated reforms to attract investment and improve the investment climate, application of the laws and regulations, and the 
scope and initiatives of the Investment Council. 
1.8.  Despite the Kyrgyz Republic’s relatively low tariff protection averaging 5%, a flat tariff profile 
with few peaks, and relatively stable application, tariffs remained an issue of concern for some Members both at the last review and this one due to a number of applied rates that exceeded the 
tariff bindings. Information was sought on when and how this matter would be rectified. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 3 - 
 
  1.9.  The Kyrgyz Republic had made strides in many  areas to adhere to WTO rules and pursue 
reforms. A few of them deserved special attent ion. Work towards developing its first export 
development strategy would certainly be a positive first step towards increasing and diversifying exports, and Members had sought more information on the regulatory changes envisioned. 
Members had also inquired about a number of regu latory issues such as Intellectual Property, 
Government Procurement, etc. For example, in the SPS area, it was noted that there was no WTO inquiry point and frequent changes by the Government in recent years had created an even more 
unstable platform for the operation of sanitary, phytosanitary, and veterinary controls. Finally, the 
Chairperson highlighted the lack of updated notifi cations in a number of areas had not allowed the 
WTO system to effectively monitor and follow-up on important trade policy changes. It seemed that there was an overarching concern about the level of transparency of Kyrgyz Trade Policy. 
1.10.  These were some of the issues Members woul d like to discuss during this meeting. The 
Chairperson was sure that Members would wish to raise many other issues as well.  
1.11.  Finally, the Chairperson informed Members that they could access the podcast of this 
meeting on the Members' website. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 4 - 
 
  2  OPENING STATEMENT BY THE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE KYRGYZ REPUBLIC 
(H.E. MR. TEMIR SARIEV) 
2.1.  On behalf of the Government of the Kyrgyz Re public, please allow me to welcome you to the 
session on the second Trade Policy Review of the Kyrgyz Republic. The delegation of the Kyrgyz 
Republic, represented by the key ministries, has arrived to Geneva to present to WTO Members 
the achievements in the trade policy of the Kyrgyz Republic over the period 2006-2012. 
2.2.  Before I continue my statement, I would like to extend gratitude to the WTO Secretariat for 
its excellent work and a comprehensive assistance provided in this area. I would also like to thank 
all WTO Member-countries that have submitted their questions and I appreciate their participation at today’s event. This reconfirms your interest in the development of the Kyrgyz Republic, and its foreign economic policy. The Kyrgyz delegation is ready for open and interactive discussion of the 
Kyrgyz Republic’s Trade Policy Report details with all of you. 
2.3.  Kyrgyzstan is well aware that world trade integration is crucial for the country’s economic 
development. Fifteen years have passed after the Kyrgyz Republic has joined the WTO. Over this 
period, the foreign trade geography and turnov er has expanded, and export structure has 
changed; the fundamentals have been laid down for a predictable trading system. Today, we trade 
with WTO Member-countries on the basis of the Most-Favoured Nation Treatment and a national 
treatment. By opening the market access Kyrgyzstan has shown itself as a trade transit hub in the 
heart of Central Asia. 
2.4.  During these 15 years, we have been able to learn an invaluable experience in the world 
trade area through our intensive participation at WTO Committees meetings, sessions, meetings of 
working groups on accession, and at the sessions of the General Council and Ministerial 
Conferences. Kyrgyzstan currently negotiates with WTO acceding countries (negotiations have been already held with 15 countries) and participates in the Doha Negotiation Round, which 
outcomes will have an effect on the new rule s for and commitments by WTO Member-countries. 
2.5.  Meanwhile the reports of the WTO Secretariat and the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic 
have extensively illustrated the economic develo pment and achievements in the trade policy and 
related issues, please allow me to provide you with more details on certain aspects of the report 
prepared by the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic. 
2.6.  A very important achievement of Kyrgyzstan du ring this period has been overcoming the 
unpredictable economic collapse caused by the World Financial Crisis in 2008-2009, domestic 
political events in 2010 and industrial disaster at the largest gold mining enterprise Kumtor in the 
last year. The result of all these elements has an immediate effect on the GDP growth, which was 
in average 4% over the period 2006-2012. 
2.7.  At that stage, the social policy, regardless of  the profound shocks, has been persistently 
focused on a thorough implementation of social commitments secured by the state. The year of 
2011 has been marked by recovery economic processe s, with 6% real growth, though the positive 
economic growth has not been maintained in 2012, and eventually, real GDP decline was 0.9%. 
From the beginning of 2013, the economy has been steadily progressing due to increased manufacturing production output, construction and services sector, and the leading growth rates in the agricultural sector. Upon the results of ten months of 2013, the GDP volume has increased by 
10.2% against reduction by 5.2% over the similar period of 2012. The key objective of the 
economic policy for 2013 is to ensure the positive  dynamics of the economic growth throughout all 
economic sectors. 
2.8.  For this purpose, the Government shall implement its core regulatory function, i.e. form an 
efficient business environment in the economy. On  one side, the Government maintains a healthy 
and sustainable macroeconomic situation by monetary, fiscal and other types of economic policy. 
On the other side, the Government sets the uniform rules for economic activity for all participants, 
ensures a competitive environment, develops and supervises compliance with normative and standards, licensing, and reorients some domestic businesses in connection to the anticipated accession to the Customs Union.  WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 5 - 
 
  2.9.  The key efforts recently undertaken by the country’s leadership have been focused on 
implementation of the priority measures to form the efficient public governance. This has allowed stabilizing our economy and ensuring safety and stability across the country. 
2.10.  The National Strategy of Sustainable Develo pment until 2017 was approved in January 2013 
to define the general vision of the Kyrgyz Republ ic’s development. The main feature of this new 
strategy is that the complex development goals, including economic welfare growth, ecological harmony and social development, rather than the objective to achieve the nominal economic 
growth, have been placed at the cornerstone of our development goals. To implement the National 
Strategy of Sustainable Development of the Kyrg yz Republic over the period 2013-2017, which 
serves as the workable governance tool for the next five years, the Government of the Kyrgyz 
Republic has developed the Program of Transiti on of the Kyrgyz Republic for Sustainable 
Development over 2013-2017, which is currently being discussed by the Parliament. 
2.11.  Our forecast shows that during the next five years (until 2017) on the assumption of the 
sustained social and political stability, the real economic growth will average 7.5% a year. The 
most visible contribution will be ensured by the services sector (3%). The construction sector’s 
contribution will double due to the planned commissioning of the largest national and regional projects. The agrarian and manufacturing sectors will also contribute their share at 0.5%. 
2.12.  By indicating the recent results and achievements, I would like to highlight that the new 
reforms have facilitated the most liberal tax regime in the region. The effective profit tax rate is 10%, income tax is 10%, and VAT 12%; these rates are more beneficial as compared to the similar taxes in neighbouring countries.  
2.13.  The World Bank Report “Doing Business” ranks Kyrgyzstan as the 68th economy in the 
world. The investment legislation of the Kyrgyz Republic has enabled to form the most liberal banking system in the region, thus ensuring the fr ee movement of capital. The equal conditions for 
operation of the Kyrgyz and foreign investors have been stipulated, as well as the stability of legal 
conditions, freedom of capital repatriation; at the same time the dividends and profit gaining have been secured. 
2.14.  The new Law “On Public-Private Partnership” has been adopted. This Law will facilitate 
building up a new public policy model in the business area, which will be supported by public-private corporations. Overall investment activity trend shows an erratic inflow of Foreign Direct Investments to Kyrgyzstan, with the volume increased by 1.8 times over the period 
2006-2012 (from US$335.6 million to US$590.7 million). Manufacturing industry remains to be the 
most attractive for foreign investors, and it holds the largest FDI share. Trading sector dominates among services sectors; immovable property transactions, renting, and consumers’ services 
sectors have an upward trend. 
2.15.  Recently, the State has intensified its efforts to development and support of 
entrepreneurship; we have reduced the number of  state fee-based services from 21,000 to 385. 
The new Law “On Licensing and Permits System” has been enacted in October 2013. This Law 
considerably simplifies the procedures for review and issuance of business permits. The number of licenses and permits has decreased by 2.5 times – from 236 to 101. This Law has been very positively assessed by the business community, as it aims at business promotion. To eliminate the 
state interference into the business activity, th e number of government controlling bodies has 
been sufficiently reduced last year – only 12 govern ment bodies operate in this area out of former 
21.  
2.16.  The first package of draft laws to reform th e mining sector has been adopted, which is 
targeted at creation of conditions for the sector’s stable development, mitigating conflicts in the regions between the population and subsoil users, minimizing bureaucratic procedures, simplifying 
the legal regime of allocation of land plots for subsoil use.  
2.17.  The Law “On Introduction of Visa-Free Regime for Citizens of Certain States for the period 
up to 60 days” has been effectuated; thus, visa-free regime applies for citizens of 44 countries. 
2.18.  The Single Window principle for foreign trade is being introduced to simplify formalization of 
documents required for export/ import with the use of advanced information technologies.   WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 6 - 
 
  2.19.  The Kyrgyz Republic is a part of the regi onal economy. The openness of the country’s 
economy based on the results from 2012 was estimated at 112.3%; the economic relations penetrate more profoundly into the international and regional markets of capital, goods, services, and labor. Accordingly, the dependence, thereo f, has been intensified. Both the success of 
economic development and its failures will considerably depend on the ability of the country to 
employ competitive benefits, occupy advantageous niches in the international labor division. 
2.20.  From the moment of the latest Trade Policy Review of the Kyrgyz Republic in 2006, the 
foreign trade turnover has continued to increase because of the liberalized trade regime. The 
foreign trade turnover of the Republic made up US$7503.9 million in 2012, having increased by 2.6 times against 2006. The trade turnover of th e Kyrgyz Republic with WTO Member-countries 
and CIS participating countries during the recent years has been nearly equal, that is about 50% 
each. WTO Member-countries dominate in the export structure, while CIS countries are major 
importers. This situation takes place because the export commodity of the Republic – gold – is exported to WTO Member-countries, and CIS participating countries prevail in the import structure 
due to the country’s dependence on energy resources.  
2.21.  Kyrgyzstan continues to liberalize its fore ign trade regime under the WTO commitments. 
The Republic does not currently apply customs duties for export of goods (except for one 
commodity), export and import quantitative restrictions. There are no restrictions for capital 
export and import, and enterprises enjoy freedom in choosing their trading partners. The state and private companies have the right to engage into import and export operations without a special 
registration or any restrictions, except for cases when such goods are subject to import and export 
licensing.  
2.22.  The effective customs tariff for imported goods is liberal, average customs duty rate is 
5.04%, and zero-duty customs rate cover 46.6% of all commodity headings. In addition, the 
customs duty rates applied are much lower than our binding commitments.  
2.23.  Furthermore, the licensing procedure is not intended to restrict export/import of goods 
neither by quantity, nor by its value. Licensing has allowed to establish control over export/import 
of certain categories of goods, which may have an adverse effect on the population health, 
consumer and environmental welfare, national se curity, preservation of national wealth and 
natural resources. The Kyrgyz Republic has no t introduced any antidumping and countervailing 
measures. Safeguard measures have been applied for import of one commodity item only, i.e. 
wheat flour. 
2.24.  The services market is open; there are no restrictions to market access and national 
treatment across all sectors and modes of services provision (except for a few strategic sectors). 
Foreign trade turnover in 2012 accounted US$4197.1 million and has increased by six times 
against 2006. Services sector has expanded pred ominantly due to the growth of wholesale and 
retail trade, and an improved system of transp ortation and communication. Over half of total 
export services accounts for tourist services, followed by transport and business services.  
2.25.  Services sector has been kept at a quite stable level even during the global finance crisis, 
thus helping the growth of the entire economy. New banking initiatives have been introduced in the country, which anticipate allocation of pref erential and long-term loans for farmers. The 
banking auctions have been held in the country for commercial banks to attract additional funding 
for lending to the population and businesses in the Kyrgyz Republic. 
2.26.  As regards the areas covered by Agreemen ts on TBT and SPS measures, the Kyrgyz 
Republic, within its technical regulation and standardization framework, continues development 
and adoption of technical regulations that prescribe mandatory requirements to the products and forms of conformity assessment in compliance with international norms and rules, and 
harmonization of the national standards with international standards, such as ISO, IEC , and 
Codex Alimentarius Committee. Forty-six technical regulations have been adopted in the Kyrgyz Republic, including 12 regulations in 2013. The ongoin g technical regulation reform is based on the 
principles of application of voluntary standards and restriction of the state control. 
2.27.  The list of products subject to mandatory conformity assessment has been substantially 
reduced – from 7000 to 364 items. The technical re gulations adopted have introduced a form of WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 7 - 
 
  conformity assessment – a declaration of conformity for food products and consumer goods. 
Therefore, the liability of producers, suppliers  and sellers for the products safety has been 
tightened. 
2.28.  The National Accreditation Center of the Kyrg yz Republic has gained the status of the 
full-fledged member of the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) in 
October 2013, in particular, regarding accreditation of testing laboratories under ISO/IEC 17025. This demonstrates the reliability and international-level recognition of the national accreditation 
system of the Kyrgyz Republic related to laboratory tests.  
2.29.  The inquiry points for TBT and SPS have been determined in the Kyrgyz Republic and both 
Enquiry Points are currently operational. With respect to application of SPS measures, the work is ongoing to improve the Kyrgyz legislation. The La w of the Kyrgyz Republic “On Identification of 
Animals” has been adopted. Bylaws with dete rmining the responsible government bodies for 
enforcement of this Law’s provisions have been  drafted. The draft legal normative act on the 
zoning of the territory of the Kyrgyz Republic is being discussed. 
2.30.  Regarding participation of the Kyrgyz Republic in the regional trade agreements, it should 
be noted that at the moment of WTO accession and further on, our country has notified to the WTO its intention to participate in the regional trade and economic agreements, including the 
Customs Union. In 2011, the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic has submitted the formal 
statement on its intention to start the negotiation process to accede the Customs Union and Uniform Economic Area of the Republic of Belarus, Republic of Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation. In October of that year we have rece ived the approval by the Customs Union superior 
body for negotiating on this matter. The Interagency committee on negotiations has been formed 
under the Government and at present, the Kyrgyz party in cooperation with the Eurasian Economic 
Committee works out the draft Road Map for accession of the Kyrgyz Republic to the Customs 
Union.  
2.31.  The Government of the Kyrgyz Republic is aware about possible challenges connected to the 
accession to the Customs Union from the view point of the WTO commitments. The relevant work 
will be carried out with CU countries to find solutions, so that to avoid potential problems that may 
emerge because of changes in our commitments under Articles XXIV and XXVII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade due to the Customs Union accession. 
2.32.  In conclusion, let me assure all attendees of this session that your comments and questions 
raised during the Trade Policy Review of the Kyrgyz Republic will be considered at the central level, 
because the Kyrgyz Government has the intention to develop an action plan to fulfil the required measures to improve its trade policy. Thus, the recommendations stated during this critically 
important Trade Policy Review event will be regard ed in the process of elaboration of the said 
measures. 
2.33.  The Government of the Kyrgyz Republic shall continue its work in the trade policy area, 
based upon the fundamental WTO principles of predictability and non-discrimination of WTO 
Members. Within this process we hope to receive the support from WTO Members. We also hope that in the near future the key donors would consider a possibility to increase investments into the trade-related technical assistance projects in the Kyrgyz Republic. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 8 - 
 
  3  STATEMENT BY THE DISCUSSANT (H.E. AMBASSADOR SELIM KUNERALP) 
3.1.  I should like to welcome the delegation of the Kyrgyz Republic headed by H.E Mr Temir 
S A R I E V ,  M i n i s t e r  o f  E c o n o m y ,  t o  t h e i r  s e c o n d  T r a d e  P o l i c y  R e v i e w .  I t  i s  a n  h o n o u r  a n d  g r e a t  pleasure for me to act as discussant at the review of the Kyrgyz Republic with which my country 
maintains very close political and economic relations but also shares a rich cultural heritage. 
3.2.  At the very outset, I should like to draw your attention to the extraordinary efforts the Kyrgyz 
Republic has made to transform its planned economy structure into a market economy after the 
breakup of the Soviet Union.  
3.3.  Apart from experiencing a long and intensive period of economic reforms, the Kyrgyz 
Republic has been the first country in Central Asia to become a Member of the WTO. The Kyrgyz Republic has demonstrated an extraordinary tran sformational performance in spite of a rather 
negative external environment. When the Kyrgyz Republic gained independence in 1991: 
‐ It suffered from being a landlocked country geographically remote from major economic 
 centres; 
‐ It was heavily dependent industrially on the supplier and consumer networks in the other 
 former Soviet Republics; 
‐ It lacked easily extractable energy resources and minerals; 
‐ It also lacked many of the institutions fo r an independent state, the experience of 
 democracy and the fundamental ingredients of a market economy; 
‐ However, the country possessed good social infrastructure and ample human capital. 
3.4.  Despite largely negative initial conditions and the dissolution of the USSR that led to a crisis 
in inter-republican trade, a collapse in the demand for industrial production, an enormous increase 
in logistical and energy costs, the Kyrgyz Republic was able to recover quickly and adapted to new economic conditions.  
3.5.  During the course of economic reforms, the Ky rgyz Republic has also made important efforts 
to transform its trading structure and its former, quite complex institutional, social and economic system to become a full-fledged market economy and a democracy. In the early phases, it has 
struggled to overcome the impediments posed by th e legacy of the former system while trying to 
counter drastic output decline, achieve macroeconomic stabilization, price liberalization, privatization of state-owned enterprises, de-collectivization in agriculture, land reform and external economic liberalization. 
ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT 
3.6.  Firstly, I think it is important to underline the role of these initial economic conditions and the 
structural problems the Kyrgyz Republic had to face before delving into the current trade issues, 
since this legacy still has serious repercussions on the country’s trade and economic policy 
orientation. It may be sufficient and illustrative to just mention that during the early course of transition in the 1990s, the GDP per ca pita of Kyrgyzstan shrank by 54%. 
3.7.  Secondly, it is also important to identify certain characteristics of the Kyrgyz economy which 
have implications for its current trade policy orientation. 
3.8.  In this regard, I should like to emphasize that although the Kyrgyz economy is relatively 
diversified in terms of the sectoral components of  its GDP, gold and agriculture still dominate its 
exports.  
3.9.  The total merchandise trade more than double d during the review period. However, the 
current account balance is still in deficit. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 9 - 
 
  3.10.  The foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows in the Kyrgyz Republic are concentrated in a few 
sectors, such as processing, real estate, and services and have not been reflecting the full potential of the economy. Taking all these issues  into consideration, one of the most important 
policy priorities for both trade and developm ent perspectives seems to be the need for 
diversification of the country’s production and exports bases. 
3.11.  According to the World Bank’s “doing business in dicators”, the Kyrgyz Republic ranks 12th in 
terms of formalities for starting a business which is a very good rank indeed. However, the same 
study also reveals that the average Kyrgyz entrep reneur spends 63 days to export a container 
while this figure is on average 25 days in Eastern Europe and Central Asia and 11 days in the OECD countries. The same transaction costs US$4360 to the exporter, while this amount is US$2100 in Eastern Europe and Central Asia and US$1000 in the OECD. These heavy 
administrative and transaction costs are important indicators of the Kyrgyz Republic’s bottlenecks. 
TRADE POLICY REGIME: FRAMEWORK AND OBJECTIVE General Framework 
3.12.  Coming to its trade policy framework, the Kyrgyz Republic’s legal provisions are generally in 
line with the WTO obligations and favour trade facilitation, although insufficient institutional capacity, resource constraints and lack of necessary regulations for the implementation process 
lessen the effects of this positive framework.  
3.13.  In general, the Kyrgyz Republic has one of the most liberal trade regimes in Central Asia 
and in the Former Soviet Union.  
3.14.  Currently, the Kyrgyz Republic also maintains one of the lowest levels of average tariff 
protection among all acceding countries with 5% average MFN applied tariffs. This tariff average 
has not changed during the review period. Moreover, 20% of its tariffs lines are bound at zero reflecting the country’s participation in the Uruguay Round zero-for-zero initiatives and the 
Information Technology Agreements. The country imposes high duties on a few products including 
tobacco, alcohol, fish and clothing products. 
3.15.  Moreover, the Kyrgyz Republic has not resort ed to dispute settlement and antidumping or 
countervailing duty investigation measures. It is also important to note that the Kyrgyz Republic 
does not maintain any special safeguard measures or TRQ provisions and has bound all other duties and charges at zero. 
Trade facilitating measures  
3.16.  It is also good to read in the Government Report of the Kyrgyz Republic the reiteration of 
the country’s commitment to liberal and open trade policies.  
3.17.  During the period under review, the Kyrgyz Re public has also initiated a number of reforms 
aimed at facilitating trade, including the project for a "single window" in 2007 and "paperless 
trade" in 2008. As a result, customs procedures have been streamlined and the number of required documents has been reduced. 
3.18.  However, a number of non-tariff measures remain  in place or were introduced during the 
period, in particular, prohibitions, seasonal duties, import licences, safeguard measures, and products subject to state-trading. With the new tr ade facilitating measures overall efficiency has 
been improved but implementation problems remain. 
Customs Union 
3.19.  The decision to join the Belarus-Kazakhstan-RF Customs Union seems one of the most 
critical challenges facing the Kyrgyz trade po licy regime at the moment. In 2011, the Kyrgyz 
Republic declared its intention to join the treaty  on the Commonwealth of Independent States Free 
Trade Area or Customs Union (CU). Its accession was confirmed by the authoritative body of the 
CU in the same year. It is obvious that, participating in the CU will have an enormous effect on the 
Kyrgyz Republic’s overall trade and economic policy orientation.  WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 10 - 
 
  3.20.  From the WTO and multilateral perspective, th e harmonization of the Kyrgyz tariffs with 
those of the Customs Union, would be the most pressing problem for the near future since the average level of tariffs for the customs union is 10. 5% while that of the Kyrgyz Republic is 5%. A 
considerable number of tariff lines would require re-negotiations and compensation. Therefore, the 
issue seems to be a delicate and complex one and needs deep reflection and a well crafted 
solution. We would welcome any information that the Kyrgyz delegation would supply us on this topic, additional to the replies they have given to different Members. 
Investment issues 
3.21.  The largely unrealized economic potential of the Kyrgyz Republic makes investment 
promotion an important trade policy priority. 
3.22.  It is important to note that in the Republic’s macroeconomic accounts, the contribution of 
gross-fixed capital formation to GDP seems to have been steadily in decline. In parallel with a 
good and sound legal framework, the Kyrgyz Republic should devise policies to boost investment. In this regard, the country’s 2009-11 Investment Strategy includes provisions to attract private 
investors by eliminating administrative barriers, creating favourable customs and tax regimes, and 
strengthening confidence in the financial system.  
Tariffs above bound rates  
3.23.  Some of the applied tariffs of the Kyrgyz Repub lic are exceeding bound rates. In addition to 
the problems posed by CU tariff harmonization an d investment environment, these tariffs are an 
important issue which has systemic implications for GATT 1994 and for the multilateral trading system.    
3.24.  The Secretariat Report underlines the fact that there is also scope for improvement in the 
Kyrgyz Republic's notification record regarding several WTO areas including state economic enterprises and privatization. I believe that transparency in such areas would make the Kyrgyz 
Republic a more attractive destination for FDI. 
3.25.  There also seem to be important problems in the production, importation, as well as sale of 
counterfeit goods and special attention is therefore required for anti-piracy measures with respect 
to audio, video, software, and counterfeit trademarks. 
3.26.  In conclusion, I would like to emphasize several points. 
3.27.  Firstly, devising a consistent, carefully crafted external economic strategy seems a crucial 
issue for the policy makers. 
3.28.  Secondly, the Kyrgyz Republic can reduce general economic risk factors by working on a 
well designed, realistic and consistent sectoral diversification strategy. This diversification strategy is needed: 
‐ To neutralize the negative effects of the fluctuations of international gold prices since gold is 
 by far the main export item; 
‐ To develop a comprehensive and practical food security strategy and to reduce the effect of 
 fluctuations of food prices and dependence on imports; 
‐ To also mitigate the negative effects of employment concentration in a few sectors such as 
 textiles, gold and agriculture, and depend ence on remittances from Kyrgyz nationals 
 working abroad, particularly the Russian Federation. 
3.29.  Thirdly, strengthening the financial system and improving infrastructure can make a positive 
contribution to GDP growth and create posi tive externalities between and among sectors 
3.30.  I wish the delegation of Kyrgyz Republic a successful review.  WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 11 - 
 
  4  STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS 
PAKISTAN 4.1.  Kyrgyzstan is a low income, mountainous country with a large agricultural sector. It has 
carried out market, regulatory and land reforms which have visibly benefited its economy since its 
independence. A comprehensive medium-term poverty reduction and economic growth strategy 
was initiated in 2005 that also reduced the fiscal deficit. The overthrow of President BAKIEV in April 2010 and subsequent ethnic clashes caused massive unrest and violence that led to 
shrinkage in agricultural production and trade resu lting in the GDP to contract to 0.5% in 2010. 
Substantial increase in crisis-related spending for rehabilitation of damaged infrastructure increased the fiscal deficit to 11% of GDP. 
4.2.  The dispute at the Kumtor gold mine dealt a further blow to the economy. Yet in 2013, the 
dispute at Kumtor mine was brought under control that accelerated the industrial output by 18.4% 
and propelled the GDP to 7.9% in 2013, so far. An increase of 15% in construction also led to a substantial rise in new capital. During the first 6 months of 2013, GDP grew by 7.9%. The ADB 
projects a growth forecast for 2013 at 7.5% after a major slump last year, but in line with that of 
8.5% in 2007-08 and 8.4% in 2011. 
4.3.  Kyrgyzstan was the first CIS country to accede to the WTO. Since becoming a WTO Member, 
Kyrgyzstan has liberalized its trade regime significantly by reducing customs duties and eliminating 
several NTBs, thus maintaining a low tariff protection. Kyrgyzstan has a relatively diversified economy. Its ranking in Doing Business is 68 out of 189 for 2014 (2 up from 2013) and its economic freedom score is 59.6, making it the 89th freest in the 2013 index. The Kyrgyz Republic 
has not used the Dispute Settlement system or initiated any antidumping or countervailing duty 
investigations. It has submitted proposals in the Doha negotiations, participated in the work of committees and the monitoring exercise, and has been active in development and aid-for-trade 
areas. 
4.4.  The Kyrgyz Republic's total merchandise trade more than doubled during 2006-12. However, 
as of 2013, remittances and exports of textiles and textile products decreased due to weaker 
external demand and slower growth in major part ners. Industrial exports include gold, mercury, 
uranium, natural gas, and electricity. The economy depends heavily on gold exports, mainly from output at the Kumtor gold mine, and on remittances from Kyrgyzstani migrant workers primarily in Russia. At the same time, petroleum imports have increased. Nonetheless, the current account 
balance is forecast to improve by year-end, with export growth narrowing the deficit to 8% of GDP 
in 2013. The current account deficit is projected at 5% of GDP for 2014. Kyrgyzstan has been able to reduce inflation from 16.6% in 2011 to 4% now. 
4.5.  The Kyrgyz Republic, being a landlocked country , supports improvement in trade facilitation, 
especially measures for improving Articles V, VIII, and X. It also requires technical assistance for 
creating capacities in trade and transport facilitation. 
4.6.  Kyrgyzstan has rich natural resources but a high untapped potential in sectors like tourism, 
transport and hydropower. The Government accords high priority to attracting foreign investment coupled with increased efforts on outreach and institutions to attract foreign investment.  
4.7.  The Government is also currently in the process of approving its first export development 
strategy with the help of the ITC. 
4.8.  Kyrgyzstan is actively considering joining the Customs Union of the Russian Federation, 
Kazakhstan and Belarus. However, not only that Kyrgyzstan would have to almost double its tariff 
in line with the CU- in addition, several regulations under the CU and WTO would also have to be 
reconciled. All this has the grim potentiality that Kyrgyzstan would have to pay considerable compensation to WTO Members. 
4.9.  A number of non-tariff measures remain in place or were introduced during the period, in 
particular, prohibitions, seasonal duties, import licences, safeguard measures (one recently on flour), and products subject to state-trading. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 12 - 
 
  4.10.  Although GDP per capita has almost doubled during the period under review, 33.7% 
population is below the poverty line, with unemployment at 8.6%.  
4.11.  Overall, we are happy to note that notwithstanding several structural and institutional 
bottlenecks, the Kyrgyz Republic has done quite well on its way to prosperity, and we commend its 
performance during the review period. Progress in reconstruction, fighting corruption, restructuring 
domestic industry, and attracting foreign aid and investment are considered a key to future growth. 
CANADA 
4.12.  Minister Sariev's personal participation in this review is testament to the Kyrgyz Republic's 
commitment to good economic governance, and to an economic strategy that puts priority on promoting a better business and investment climate, including through improved public sector 
management. The Secretariat Report recognizes the Kyrgyz Government's structural reforms to 
consolidate government ministries and agencies and to reduce bureaucracy more generally as reiterated by Minister Sariev in his opening remarks,  particularly in view of the post-Soviet starting 
point highlighted by Ambassador Kuneralp. Cana da supports fully this on-going agenda. We 
particularly welcome the steps taken by the Government to streamline and render more efficient the customs processing regime, to maintain a generally low tariff protection, and to reform public 
procurement functions. 
4.13.  I would note that political and civil stability are the sine qua non  for attracting the foreign 
investment needed to realize the potential locked in Kyrgyz's abundant natural resource base and tourism sector. And I congratulate the Kyrgyz Republic on the strides it has made in building a 
democratic and pluralistic state, including by promoting reforms supporting increased media and 
NGO freedoms and as the Minister said, in addressing the serious internal tensions that arose in 2010. 
4.14.  Admittedly, Canadian cooperation with the Kyrgyz Republic takes place largely through 
multilateral channels: the European Bank fo r Reconstruction and Development, the Asian 
Development Bank, the World Bank, and the UN Development Programme, in addition to our joint 
involvement with NGOs such as the Aga Khan Development Network. 
4.15.  But surprising as it may be to some, Canada is also the largest foreign investor in the 
country. In fact, the Kumtor gold mine contribute s about 10% of the Kyrgyz GDP. The experience 
of Centerra Gold Corporation and other Canadian investors has been difficult, at times. They have 
reported situations where Kyrgyz authorities have failed to respect contracts, licences and their 
own commercial arrangements with investors. It is  obvious that a more transparent, stable and 
predictable business environment would entice greater foreign investment, which would in turn 
promote increased trade and be a major contributor to poverty reduction. 
4.16.  With this in mind, Canada welcomes the commitment of the Kyrgyz Government to reduce 
bureaucratic barriers to foreign investment. We support the Government's increased efforts at 
investor outreach and the creation of institutions designed to attract greater and more diversified 
foreign investment, as the Chair pointed out in his opening remarks. This should help to redress the relatively low received share of FDI inflows relative to the Kyrgyz Republic's neighbours, as noted in the WTO's Secretariat Report. 
4.17.  As the Kyrgyz Republic succeeds in attracting  renewed FDI, we share the assessment of the 
Secretariat that there is an urgent  need for investment in transportation and energy infrastructure, 
where deficiencies continue to act as a drag on international, regional and domestic trade and 
commerce, thereby hindering market development. 
4.18.  The Kyrgyz Republic clearly recognizes the im portance of open trade to economic growth 
and prosperity. Again, as the Chair recognized, it was the first CIS country to accede to the WTO 
in 1998, and has established numerous regional and bilateral free-trade agreements. But this open 
trade policy could be significantly impacted by it s expected accession to the Eurasian Economic 
Community Customs Union in the coming months. I appreciate Minister Sariev's promise to give forthright and comprehensive consideration to the process of renegotiating and harmonizing tariff 
bindings at the WTO, which the WTO Secretariat has noted as a concern. In the interim, we WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 13 - 
 
  encourage the Government to take steps to ensure that adequate resources are devoted to 
ensuring that WTO obligations and/or implementation gaps are addressed, as noted in the Secretariat's Report. 
4.19.  Canada has submitted written questions that reflect our concerns regarding several 
trade-policy related measures that may impede market access or otherwise constrain mutually 
beneficial growth in trade and investment between our two countries, including on tariff matters mentioned by Ambassador Kuneralp. We look forward to the Kyrgyz Republic's responses, and 
more generally to a constructive exchange of views on all related aspects of trade policy. 
EUROPEAN
 UNION 
4.20.  This is the second Trade Policy Review of the Kyrgyz Republic since its accession to the WTO 
in 1998. The Secretariat reports that the country has continued to pursue its policy of openness 
and low tariffs which has enabled it to double its trade over the period reviewed despite the 
internal instability and harsh climatic conditions that affected the economy. 
4.21.  The EU shares the Secretariat's views including that the economic potential of the country is 
not fully used. Improving the business climate woul d help to improve the situation by contributing 
to attract the needed investments. In this regard , legal predictability, transparency and effective 
functioning of the judicial system ar e important elements for investors. 
4.22.  A key issue in terms of predictability of the economic environment is the impact that the 
Customs Union, in which the Kyrgyz Republic may become a member in the future, could have on a number of trade parameters that are crucial for the Kyrgyz economy. I think of course of the 
potential increases in tariff rates, the custom legislation, or the legislation on trade defence, on 
SPS and the TBT frameworks.   
4.23.  The EU's development aid to the Kyrgyz Repub l i c  a i m s  a t  s u p p o r t i n g  t h e  r e f o r m  e f f o r t s .  
During the period now reviewed, EU aid through bilateral programmes amounted to €171 million 
and covered, but not exclusively, income-generating activities, education, judicial reform, rule of 
law, public financial management. In addition, the Kyrgyz Republic benefited from various EU 
regional and global development assistance programmes. 
4.24.  The EU's weight in the country's total external trade is of about 5.4% and the EU hopes that 
this figure will increase as there is potential for growth. As of 2014, the Kyrgyz Republic will 
continue to be a beneficiary of the Generaliz ed Scheme of Preferences (GSP) of the EU.  
4.25.  The EU welcomes the Kyrgyz authorities' choice to opt for the alternative timeframe which 
allows WTO Members to receive replies to their advanced questions before the meeting. The EU 
does not underestimate the challenges of replying to advanced questions before the meeting. The EU congratulates the Kyrgyz Republic for having released most of its replies on time, which allows 
for more interaction today. 
4.26.  The answers provided to the EU by the Kyrgyz ' authorities give insight on how the country 
assesses the potential impact of its membership in the Customs Union. It is clear that there are 
important issues that the country has to address in this regard and also in the framework of this 
organisation. As said above, tariffs, custom procedures and many key regulatory issues will be impacted.  
4.27.  The EU hopes that this review will help everyone to gain further understanding of the 
Government's strategy to address the challenges ahead and remedy certain bottlenecks, for 
example in infrastructure such as electricity supply, that impede the country to develop further. 
KOREA 
4.28.  Korea recognizes that during the period under review, the Kyrgyz Republic developed its 
economy with its open trade and investment regimes which were primarily driven by the export of mineral products. In addition, it should be noted that the Kyrgyz Republic is exerting its efforts on 
further improving business environments through concluding bilateral investment treaties with 
roughly two dozen countries including Korea. While appreciating such efforts, it is clear that, as WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 14 - 
 
  indicated by many WTO Members, there remain ou tstanding challenges to further strengthen its 
economy. 
4.29.  First, despite the fact that Kyrgyzstan economy is relatively diversified, it still needs to 
reduce its high dependency on the mining and agriculture sectors, which makes it vulnerable to 
the fluctuation of international food and raw material prices. This becomes a more serious problem 
given that the Kyrgyz Republic is highly depend ent on the imports of manufactured goods, which 
has resulted in the persistent trade deficit. 
4.30.  Second, the Kyrgyz Republic needs to resolve issues related to political instability, 
burdensome bureaucracy and lack of legal framew ork. It is advisable to duly address these 
problems so that the Kyrgyz Republic can effectively attract foreign direct investments, which is crucial to its further development. 
4.31.  Lastly, due to Kyrgyzstan's plan to accede to the Customs Union to which Russia, 
Kazakhstan, and Belarus have acceded, the Kyrgyz  Republic has to adjust its tariff regimes 
accordingly, as well as its trade related rules, particularly within the SPS framework. Without a 
doubt, this will have a great impact on Kyrgyzstan's economy, and has the potential to become 
complicated given the situations related to WTO accession of Kazakhstan and Belarus. Korea would like to know what timeframe Kyrgyz Republic ha s with respect to the accession to the Customs 
Union. 
4.32.  In this regard, our written questions submitted concern the roadmap for the Kyrgyz 
Republic's accession to the Customs Union, and the pl an to initiate the re-negotiation of WTO tariff 
commitments, the specific plan to bring the tariffs within the WTO bounds, and explanation on low 
FDI inflow and Kyrgyzstan's possible corrective measures. 
4.33.  Taking this opportunity, as I requested the Ky rgyz Republic a few weeks ago, we would like 
to request the Kyrgyz Republic to verify the information on the status of bilateral investment 
agreement between Korea-Kyrgyz on the Table 2.4 of page 28 of the Secretariat Report, I look 
forward to hearing from the Kyrgyz delegation soon. 
CHINA 
4.34.  We are very happy to see that during the revi ew period, the Kyrgyz Republic has maintained 
an open trade regime against global financial turmoil, with various measures such as a number of trade facilitating instruments including “paperless trade” initiative and a “single window” for customs and improving its government procurem ent. These achievements don’t come without 
efforts. As the Government Report pointed out, the Kyrgyz Republic is steadily committed to the 
liberal trade policy and constantly reformed itse lf to conform to the world trade development 
trends. China highly commends the Kyrgyz Republic’s efforts towards multilateral trade 
liberalization and regional integration. 
4.35.  Having said that, we believe that there is  still room for improvement in the Kyrgyz 
Republic’s trade policy. Its legal framework needs to be updated in a number of areas related to 
trade and investment such as Law on Investments,  standards, TBT, and SPS, mining industry, and 
relevant implementing regulations. It is also noted that inadequate transport and energy infrastructure, and limited international air links has exacerbated the economic disadvantage of the country’s landlocked situation. We hope that  concrete efforts will be made by the Kyrgyz 
Republic in those areas so as to improve its trade and investment environment. China also pays 
close attention to the Kyrgyz Republic’s acceding to the Customs Union currently comprised of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russian Federation and ex pects that the Kyrgyz Republic’s aligning its 
rules to those of the Customs Union will facilitate its economic cooperation with other Members 
including China.  
4.36.  China and the Kyrgyz Republic are good neighbours, good friends and strategic partners. 
China notices that the Kyrgyz Republic began to implement a national stability development 
strategy for 2013-2017 with one of the objectives for its GDP growth rate no less than 7% in that period. We sincerely wish that the Kyrgyz Republic will achieve these objectives and our bilateral cooperation under the strategic partnership established by our two Presidents in September this 
year will contribute to that process. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 15 - 
 
  UNITED  STATES 
4.37.  In 1998, the Kyrgyz Republic was the first co untry from the CIS to accede to the WTO. 
Since then, it has established itself as an important Member of the WTO community by contributing to WTO committee work and negotiations, in particular on WTO accession 
negotiations. WTO Membership, in turn, has been  a central tenant of the Kyrgyz Republic's 
economic reforms and global strategy to diversify its trade to numerous trading partners and to act as a bridge between regions and larger econom ies. The Kyrgyz Republic has integrated itself 
into the global value chain of production, particularly in the textiles sector. 
4.38.  According to the Report by the Government of Kyrgyzstan "… accession to the WTO has 
facilitated ensuring the freedom of trade to national businessmen, thus it has opened access to both foreign and domestic markets and create d the competitive environment for domestic 
producers. The fundamentals for a safe and predic table trading regime have been established, the 
geography of trade has expanded, and the foreign trade profile has changed". As the Secretariat's 
Report explains, the Kyrgyz Republic's mercha ndise trade more than doubled during 2006-12. 
Despite challenges such as underdeveloped infras tructure and vulnerability to commodity price 
swings, the Kyrgyz Republic doubled its GDP per capita in that same period. 
4.39.  We would like to commend the Kyrgyz Republic for several policy changes it has made to 
facilitate trade. For example, it has introduced  paperless trade at customs. Expediting customs 
clearance at the border is essential to helping ease some of the challenges of being a landlocked country. We would also like to commend the Kyrgyz Republic for maintaining a flexible exchange rate regime, especially considering other examples in the region where exchange rate and 
currency conversion policies form a major barrier to imports. 
4.40.  Several of the questions that we submitted in writing for this Trade Policy Review relate to 
the process by which the Kyrgyz Republic may join the Customs Union with the Russian 
Federation, Kazakhstan, and Belarus. We seek a cl earer understanding of what the impact of that 
process will be on the Kyrgyz Republic's foreign trade policy. We seek information on how it will 
ensure that the process of adopting customs union tariffs complies with WTO provisions related to 
tariffs and the formation of a customs union. We note with great concern the Secretariat's 
assessment that nearly 50% of the Kyrgyz Republic's bound tariffs do not align with the Customs Union and would require re-negotiation and compensation to WTO Members. 
4.41.  We also want to ensure that in the process of adopting customs union rules and procedures, 
that the Kyrgyz Republic maintains WTO compliant legislation and implementing rules in key areas 
such as SPS. It is further important, in that regard, that the Kyrgyz Republic finally establish its SPS inquiry point. 
4.42.  We also have some concerns about several existing compliance issues in the Kyrgyz 
Republic's current trade policy. We are concerned that the Kyrgyz Republic is currently exceeding 
its bindings on certain products, including on certain auto parts, machinery, alcohol and juices. We 
also see that notifications are long overdue in numerous areas. Notifications remain a central way 
for WTO Members to understand and monitor developments in one another's trade policy. We would like to urge the Kyrgyz Republic to accelerate its negotiations to join the Government Procurement Agreement. And finally, we are cl osely watching developments in the financial 
services sector related to electronic payments to ensure foreign operators' activities are not 
constrained. 
4.43.  The United States and the Kyrgyz Republic enjoy a close friendship and partnership across a 
range of issues based on shared values and principles. Our Governments regularly consult with 
each other on issues of mutual importance and both of us recognize the value of continued cooperation on such issues, including international trade. Last week, in fact, our two Governments 
met in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan as part of the U. S.-Central Asia Trade and Investment Framework 
Agreement meetings. We discussed with our Kyrgyz counterparts ways to work on regional trade 
issues, as well as to enhance and deepen our bi lateral trade relations. The United States has a 
bilateral investment treaty with the Kyrgyz Republic and provides generalized system of 
preferences benefits to its traders. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 16 - 
 
  4.44.  The United States provides various forms of technical assistance and foreign assistance to 
help the Kyrgyz Government and economic operators in the Kyrgyz Republic to further develop the economy and to take advantage of trade opportunities. The U.S. Department of Commerce's Commercial Law Development Program has provided the Kyrgyz Republic with assistance on 
customs, government procurement procedures, and th e adjudication of intellectual property rights. 
USAID assists the Kyrgyz Government in the implementation of its economic policy reform agenda to promote business development, economic growth, and job creation. It is working in the areas of 
trade, agricultural development and food security , development of energy sector infrastructure, 
among other areas. 
4.45.  In closing, I would like to emphasize that th e Kyrgyz Republic is a valued partner of the 
United States, and that our cooperation in the WTO is a key element of our partnership. We look 
forward to working closely with the Kyrgyz Repub lic and our WTO partners to strengthen and build 
on the WTO's rules-based system. We wish the Ky rgyz Republic a successful review and we thank 
the delegation for its attention to our questions. 
BRAZIL 
4.46.  It is a matter of satisfaction for Brazil to participate in the Trade Policy Review of the Kyrgyz 
Republic, a recently acceded Member. Ever since th e establishment of diplomatic relations in 1993, 
we have built a bilateral relationship based on a spirit of trust and openness to cooperation. 
Nevertheless, there is still much potential to deepen and strengthen the ties between our Governments and societies. The figures of our trad ing relationship are still modest and the basket 
of products is highly concentrated: Brazilian exports are basically made up of meat and Kyrgyz 
exports of rubber and organic chemical products. 
4.47.  Notwithstanding the domestic difficulties  faced in 2005 and 2010, and the challenges 
stemming from its transformation into a market-based economy, the Kyrgyz Republic has been 
able to double its GDP per capita in the period 2006-12. What is most striking, the poverty level 
has declined from 39.9% to 36.8% of the population in the same period. We hope the macroeconomic targets for 2013 contribute not only to achieving economic stability but also to 
fighting poverty and improving the livi ng conditions of the Kyrgyz people. 
4.48.  As regards the economic measures mentioned in the Report of the Secretariat, the Kyrgyz 
Government should be commended especially by undertaking the tax administration reform and 
the gradual implementation of el ectronic public procurement. 
4.49.  Now turning specifically to trade, the Kyrgyz Republic has sought concrete solutions to the 
bottlenecks it is faced with. Trade facilitating measures such as the "paperless trade" initiative and a "single window" for customs operations are note worthy. Moreover, the National Export Strategy 
will address specific trade gaps by establishing measures and policies concerning export finance, 
insurance, promotion and marketing assistance. Such initiatives augur well, as they are meant to bolster export increase and diversification, which may be assisted by a projected GDP growth of no 
less than 6% in the short and medium term. 
4.50.  On the other hand, there are a number of specific trade-related concerns that need to be 
addressed. The designation of a SPS enquiry po int remains pending and domestic phytosanitary 
quarantine provisions do not fully comply with the international rules in this respect. There are no 
updated schemes for phytosanitary risk analysis either. 
4.51.  At the present moment, another matter of concern is that a group of approximately 90 tariff 
lines register applied tariffs above the bound levels at the WTO. No less important, a study by the 
Eurasian Development Bank points to the possibili ty that, as a result of the Kyrgyz Republic 
harmonizing its tariff universe to join the Customs Union, around 50% of its tariff lines would require renegotiations at the WTO for compensation, with significant tariff differences for imports 
such as meat and prepared meat products. Brazil expects the tariff harmonization process not to 
reduce or hamper the market access for its exports to the Kyrgyz Republic. 
4.52.  The Kyrgyz Republic has given proof that it is aware of the need to develop its energy, 
especially hydropower, and tourism industries. Both sectors have considerable potential and offer 
an important opportunity for job creation and investment plans, which, if well designed and WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 17 - 
 
  implemented, may afford its economy an enhanced level of productivity and integration in the 
global flows of goods and services. Brazil stands ready to cooperate with the Kyrgyz Republic on 
this regard, especially through the exchange of experiences. 
TURKEY 
4.53.  I would like to emphasize the point that Turkey strongly appreciates and closely follows all 
the efforts of the Kyrgyz Republic to transition its economy from a centrally-planned system to a market led mechanism since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Their economic transition was 
indeed a very difficult process because it overla pped three different phenomena at the same time: 
making a transition from a socialist system to a market mechanism, shifting from long period of 
isolation to the integration into the world economy, and experiencing accelerated process of globalization. 
4.54.  I would like to underline that, since its inception in 1991, Turkey has always been deeply 
interested in and tried its best to help the Kyrgyz Republic's efforts to consolidate its independence and to enhance its engagement with the World economy. 
4.55.  I will be brief and emphasize several points wi th respect to the trade regime of the Kyrgyz 
Republic. 
4.56.  First, as was also mentioned before by others, the Kyrgyz Republic has been the first 
country among CIS to become the Member of the WTO. Considering the painful negative supply 
and production shocks stemming from the co llapse of the USSR, and considering also the 
devastating contraction in the GDP during the firs t decade of transition, the importance of the 
Kyrgyz Republic's achievement of the WTO Member ship in the 90s should not be underestimated. 
4.57.  The Secretariat Report underlines that the Kyrgyz Republic has one of the most open and 
liberal trade regimes among the former socialist economies. Indeed, considering its level of economic development and per capita GDP, the Kyrg yz Republic has lower level of average tariffs 
than many advanced economies including many OECD members. Currently, it has 5% average 
MFN tariffs, by any standards this figure reflects a rather liberal and low level of protection for the sectors of the Kyrgyz economy. 
4.58.  Second, we are also learning from the Secretariat Report that the Kyrgyz Republic has not 
resorted to any trade defence measures during the review period such as antidumping nor has it used Dispute settlement mechanism. 
4.59.  We are also happy to observe that during the review period, the Kyrgyz Republic has 
undertaken a number of trade facilitating reforms including "single window" and "paperless trade 
projects" which have drastically reduced the number of required documents for customs transactions. 
4.60.  We also appreciate the commitment reiterated by  the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic in 
its Government Report for maintaining conditions for competitiveness and favourable investment environment. 
4.61.  Since investment is a critical issue for the Kyrgyz Republic for several reasons, we are 
happy to observe the awareness of the Kyrgyz au thorities for improving investment environment. 
Investment strategy seems to have necessary provisions to enhance private investment by eliminating administrative and fiscal costs, strengthening trust and financial system. 
4.62.  It was also mentioned that a number of tariffs exceeds the legal bound rates. In this 
respect, it is also good to observe that the authorities are well aware of the situation and working to resolve the issue. 
4.63.  In terms of trade policy framework, th e Kyrgyz Republic's accession to the 
Belarus-Kazakstan-Russia Customs Union, and related tariff adjustment seems to be candidate for the country for being a major issue in the near future within the WTO context.  WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 18 - 
 
  4.64.  Like all other countries, the Kyrgyz economy also faces both challenges and opportunities 
for its trade policy prospects. We are of the view  that it can curve the balance in favour of 
opportunities by mainly enhancing and improving its trade and investment environment. 
4.65.  In this context, working for diversifying its GDP and export concentration, increasing the 
level of saving for vital infrastructure and productive investments, and education seem important 
tools. The Kyrgyz Government seems to have a na tional export strategy to diversify its exports 
and production base.  
4.66.  Among the sectors, as it was also mentioned by the Ambassador of Canada, tourism seems 
to have a great potential for the country. We believe that the Kyrgyz Republic can further explore this potential by diversifying and improving th e number and quality of its trading products. The 
Kyrgyz Republic has one of the most beautiful and impressive landscapes of the world. It has more 
than 2 000 high mountains, one having a peak higher than 7 400 meters. 
4.67.  Finally, I would like to emphasize that Turkey ha s always been ready to help Kyrgyzstan in 
the process and is ready for its future for integrating into the global economy. 
INDIA 
4.68.  The Kyrgyz Republic’s economic performance du ring the period under review has fluctuated 
between high growth rates of over 8% in 2007 an d 2008 to a contraction of 0.5% in 2010 due to 
domestic political turmoil. A brief recovery of 6% in 2011 was again interrupted by a decline of 
0.9% in 2012 owing to a sharp fall in gold produc tion. This uneven growth is reflective of the 
severe domestic and external challenges faced by the Kyrgyz Republic.  
4.69.  Despite its rich mineral and water resources, th e Kyrgyz Republic has not been able to take 
full advantage of the opportunities available. Its landlocked location, and inadequate transport and 
energy infrastructure, are major constraints limi ting growth and development. Increased public 
spending on reconstruction and social protection, following the socio-political developments of 
2010, has resulted in high budget deficits, while hi gh food and oil prices have driven up inflation 
rates. FDI has grown but remains below potential.   
4.70.  We therefore welcome the various regulatory and structural reforms initiated by the Kyrgyz 
Republic to achieve macroeconomic stability and sustained economic growth over the long term. 
We are also encouraged by the high priority accorded by the Government to attract foreign investment through the creation of necessary inst itutions, streamlining governance structures and 
improving the business environment.   
4.71.  With one of the lowest bound tariffs among WTO Members and average applied tariffs of 
5%, the Kyrgyz Republic has a very open and liber al trade regime. It is particularly commendable 
that the Kyrgyz Republic extends duty free market access to all products from 46 LDCs. It has also 
taken important steps towards streamlining customs procedures and documentation requirements 
by working towards a single window system and ot her reforms. The number of products subject to 
compulsory certification has been cut substantia lly from 7000 to 234 and national standards have 
been harmonized with international standards.  
4.72.  As a result, trade has more than doubled during the period under review, but it remains 
vulnerable to fluctuating international commodity prices. With nearly half the export earnings coming from gold, exports have failed to keep pace with the rising imports of food stuffs, fuels and 
capital goods leading to a widening trade deficit. We hope that the National Sustainable 
Development Strategy for 2013-17, focusing on de velopment of strategic sectors like energy and 
transport, textiles and clothing, and agro-products,  would enable the Kyrgyz Republic to meet its 
trade policy objectives of sustained growth in trade and exports.   
4.73.  Regionally, the Kyrgyz Republic is aiming to join the Customs Union with Belarus, 
Kazakhstan and Russia as a step towards enhanced regional integration. It would be interesting to 
know how the Kyrgyz Republic proposes to reconcile its WTO obligations with those under the 
customs union. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 19 - 
 
  4.74.  India looks forward to working with the Kyrgyz Re public in addressing some of its challenges 
through enhanced trade and economic cooperatio n. Towards this end, India and the Kyrgyz 
Republic have set up an Intergovernmental Commission on trade, economic, science and technological cooperation, which held its 6th session  in July 2013. An Indo-Kyrgyz IT centre set up 
in 2007 has been imparting short term IT training to Kyrgyz professionals. The two sides have also 
agreed to enhance cooperation in the textile sector in the areas of research and development, technical collaboration in product development, manufacturing, testing and certification. 
Business-to-business contacts are being encour aged. However, connectivity remains a major 
challenge in promoting bilateral trade and investment. We hope that we will be able to find solutions to take our bilateral cooperation to a higher level. 
COLOMBIA 
4.75.  The growth of the Kyrgyz economy was affected  by significant external shocks during the 
period under review. The economy grew by an av erage of 4% during the period. Nonetheless, 
the country saw major fluctuations in GDP and moderate growth in 2012, when the economy was 
impacted by the decline in gold mining production at Kumtor. 
4.76.  Except for gold, expansion in the manufacturing and services sectors sustained the level 
of growth. In view of the diversification of th e economy and development opportunities in various 
sectors, it is important that the Government ensure more stable economic conditions, through 
investment in port infrastructure, connectivity and energy supply, which, together, will make it possible to overcome the challenges of competitiveness in a landlocked country. 
4.77.  According to the World Economic Forum, the most problematic factors for doing business 
in Kyrgyzstan are corruption and government and policy instability; however, it highlights the 
efficiency of the goods market, thanks to ease  of doing business and the low prevalence of 
trade barriers. 
4.78.  The economy's performance was enhanced by the Government's efforts to revise its fiscal 
policies, limit public spending and reduce red tape. 
4.79.  As regards foreign trade, the period under review saw a marked increase in Kyrgyzstan's 
overall trade, which almost tripled between 2006  and 2012 (from US$2.5 million to US$7 billion 
in 2012). This positive performance was recorded in spite of domestic socio-political instability and fluctuations in commodity prices, and contributed to the country's economic recovery. 
4.80.  Inter-institutional coordination in trade policy formulation and monitoring, especially 
at multilateral level, interaction with the private sector and increased incentives for exports 
by other economic sectors, such as textiles and clothing, are also worthy of note. 
4.81.  As regards tariffs, Kyrgyzstan has maintained a low average tariff and a significant number 
of tariff lines with applied rates below the bound level. Nevertheless, the Secretariat Report 
emphasizes that, in 2012, 90 tariff lines were in excess of the bound level. We therefore urge the Government of Kyrgyzstan to make the necessary adjustments to its legislation. 
4.82.  The Secretariat Report also points out that Kyrgyzstan's entry into the Customs Union 
comprised of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia, will have implications in terms of the harmonization 
of tariffs, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, customs valuation, rules of origin and technical regulations. The concern is that this will affect some of Kyrgyzstan's current tariff bindings 
at the WTO, which are lower than those of the Customs Union countries, and entail changes 
to Kyrgyzstan's sanitary and phytosanitary legislation, which does not comply with the international standards or the WTO SPS Agreement. 
4.83.  As a follow-up to this Trade Policy Review, we urge the Government of Kyrgyzstan to bring 
up-to-date those of its notifications that remain outstanding in a number of WTO areas and to set up an inter-institutional SPS coordination service. 
4.84.  I will conclude by reporting that as part of its strategy of rapprochement with Eurasia 
the Colombian Government conducted a visit to Kyrgyzstan in October 2012, during which the 
two governments agreed to strengthen their trad e and investment relations and to increase the WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 20 - 
 
  exchange of information and experiences in th e spheres of agriculture, energy and mining. 
Kyrgyzstan was identified and singled out as an important partner for Colombia, and we hope that the Government's trade policy strategy will gu ide the country back on the path to economic 
growth. 
PARAGUAY 
4.85.  First of all, we wish Kyrgyzstan every success in the conduct of this Review. 
4.86.  We have no doubt that it will be successful, because the country's indicators, both economic 
and in terms of reforms, are good, despite the major challenges facing this landlocked country. 
4.87.  Kyrgyzstan is farther from a seaport than almost any other country in the world. It has 
a mountainous landscape, and it therefore comes as no surprise that infrastructure development has historically been low. 
4.88.  Some of the characteristics common to landlocked countries make them less attractive 
to investors, which, over time, creates a very uneven playing field in terms of competitiveness. 
Kyrgyzstan is surrounded by countries most of which are landlocked and some are not 
yet Members of the WTO. 
4.89.  In light of this situation, the case of Kyrgyzstan is, in our view, a success. Thanks to its 
reforms and economic efficiency, external factors and foreign trade, it has succeeded 
in maintaining average growth of 4% over the review period. On the other hand, the impact 
of external shocks such as the financial crisis and other, domestic problems have led to fluctuations in the country's economic performance. 
4.90.  We commend Kyrgyzstan for its persistent efforts, and the Report emphasizes a number 
of structural reforms introduced with a view to  reducing red tape and increasing investment, 
as well as customs reforms to facilitate trade. 
4.91.  Kyrgyzstan is also undertaking a process of diversification, which, despite the decline 
in production of its main commodity, has allowed it to maintain moderate growth. It is important 
for the Government to ensure the viability of the conditions needed to achieve a sustainable 
change in production patterns. It should be able to find the means to attract investment in port 
infrastructure, connectivity and energy supply, the combination of which will enable the country 
to overcome the competitive challenges arising from its landlocked situation. 
4.92.  Although challenges such as corruption and government and political instability remain, 
other indicators point to growing efficiency in the production sector, thanks to the reforms aimed 
at making it easier to start up a business and the economy's openness to trade. 
4.93.  As regards trade policy developments, we will limit our comments to asking Kyrgyzstan 
to try and limit the changes made, upon joining the Customs Union, to harmonize tariffs, sanitary 
and phytosanitary measures, customs valuation, rules of origin and technical regulations with its 
partners. We hope that the changes will be made with a view to promoting market rules conducive to fair and fluid trade. 
4.94.  Turning to tariffs, we encourage Kyrgyzstan to make the necessary adjustments to the 
90 lines with rates in excess of the bound level and hope that the tariff implications of consolidating the Customs Union will be reduced to a minimum. 
4.95.  We also assure the Kyrgyz Government of our support and hope that it will continue 
to advance successfully towards the transformation of the economy's production patterns. This will 
be critical in reducing the excessive costs facing  landlocked developing countries such as ours. 
OMAN 
4.96.  The Sultanate of Oman enjoys excellent politic al and economic relations with the Kyrgyz 
Republic. We also work closely with the Kyrgyz Republic in the WTO. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 21 - 
 
  4.97.  We are pleased to note that the Kyrgyz Republic has continued economic reforms which 
begun with independence and were strengthened  by the WTO accession. Recent noteworthy 
achievements include controlling inflation, a successful privatization programme, currency stabilization, and significant GDP growth. It has also made commendable efforts to diversify the 
economy from excessive dependence on mineral re sources. According to the Secretariat Report 
(WT/TPR/S/288), the service sector makes up approximately half of the Kyrgyz GDP , largely on account of wholesale and retail trade (essentially re-exports ) and telecommunications.  
4.98.  The delegation of Oman is pleased to note the Kyrgyz Republic's efforts to integrate into the 
multilateral trading system by reforming its legal framework and recent trade facilitating measures taken which include the "paperless trade" initiative and a "single window" for customs. 
JAPAN 
4.99.  The Report by the Secretariat mentioned that  Kyrgyz acceded to the WTO in 1998 with a 
very open trade regime, binding all tariffs and libe ralizing many sectors. Japan hopes that Kyrgyz 
will continue the free and open trade regime which it has maintained since its accession to the 
WTO, and that Kyrgyz will achieve economic growth under the multilateral trading system. 
4.100.  However, we have a concern about Kyrgyz’s instability of economic growth due to its harsh 
climatic conditions and recent political and ethnic challenges in domestic situations. Japan hopes 
that Kyrgyz will overcome these challenges  and will achieve stable economic growth. 
4.101.  Now, let me turn to industrial policies. 
4.102.  It is reported that Kyrgyz has established an investment council and has promoted 
restructuring of current legislation in recent years in order to increase foreign direct investment. In 
addition, according to the Report by the Secretariat, its picturesque mountainous terrain, abundant 
water, and subsoil reserves including gold offer considerable opportunities to develop tourism, hydropower, and mining. Considering the prospective increment of foreign direct investment based 
on them, Japan hopes that Kyrgyz will continue to make efforts to promote such investment 
including investment by Japanese enterprises. 
4.103.   Lastly, let me commend Kyrgyz for adopting the alternative timeline for distribution and 
receipt of documents. 
INDONESIA 4.104.  Indonesia is pleased to participate in the second Trade Policy Review of the Kyrgyz 
Republic. We appreciate the Kyrgyz Republic's efforts in maintaining an open trade regime during 
global crisis, diversifying its economy and overcoming other economic challenges during the review 
period. 
4.105.  Indonesia recognizes the Kyrgyz Republic continuous support to the multilateral trading 
system and acknowledges our shared interest in the W52 coalition in negotiating TRIPS issues on 
geographical indication and the relationship of TRIPS and the Convention on biological diversity. 
4.106.  Indonesia's bilateral trade relations with the Kyrgyz Republic are still modest but growing. 
Indonesia has ratified a bilateral promotion and cooperation on investment which was signed in 
1995. We also have a bilateral banking arrangement, air transport agreement and a Memorandum of understanding on tourism. We look forward to enhancing further our economic relations. 
MINISTER
 H.E.  MR. TEMIR  SARIEV 
4.107.  I would like to thank all the distinguished delegates of the WTO Member-countries for the 
very good statements and assessment of Kyrgyzst an for their understanding of the challenges 
facing Kyrgyzstan and the process of reform. 
4.108.  Our answers to your questions were submitted in writing but I think that on Thursday our 
delegation will have another opportunity to respond. Let me address a couple of points.  WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 22 - 
 
  4.109.  First of all, diversification of our economy. We are fully aware of this need and the 
Government has its plan to diversify our economy to make it more flexible and to boost those sectors that produce added value. There is great processing of agricultural products because, for the moment, we process only 10% of our agricultural products. Textiles as well because a lot of 
people are engaged in that sector and we realize we have to develop it to create new jobs. There 
are also issues on tourism and trade. As regards increasing our exports and make them more diversified, we have invested quite significant amounts and developed the sector to cover our 
growing needs and also to be able to export energy to our neighbours. A good investment climate 
is a relevant issue for us, we have done a lot and we have still to do much more because what is important is achieving political and social stability. Another challenge is a lack of access to seas. As regards political stability, I think we have manage d to achievement. We are the first country in 
Central Asia which selected a parliamentary democratic system of governance. Of course, we are 
facing some excesses but we should achieve much  greater transparency in our state governance 
and political competition and also fight against corruption. The last point is accession of Kyrgyzstan 
to the Customs Union. Let me say that there are items in regards to which we depend completely 
on the Customs Union. That is agriculture produc tion, textiles and some industrial goods. And 
there are other items in regard to which we depend on the countries of the Customs Union, that is 
energy (98% of energy is imported), timber, me tal structures, some equipment and some types of 
food (we import flour from Kazakhstan). So accession to the Customs Union is a sensitive issue for us. We should take into account all your wish es and I think we shall engage very active 
negotiations with the WTO Members. Furthermore, the Russian Federation is Member of the WTO. 
We shall cooperate with you in a very effective manner. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 23 - 
 
  5  REPLIES BY THE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE KYRGYZ REPUBLIC AND ADDITIONAL 
COMMENTS 
5.1.  On behalf of the Kyrgyz delegation, please allow me to thank again all the participants for 
their active participation in the discussion and questions submitted. This confirms the interest in 
the trade policy implemented by the Government  of Kyrgyzstan over the period 2006-2012. 
5.2.  WTO Members have submitted over 100 questions on virtually all WTO Agreements. Most of 
those questions touch upon diversification of our economy and investments, licensing, sanitary and 
phytosanitary measures, operation of the notification body, SPS enquiry point, accession of 
Kyrgyzstan to the Customs Union, observance of  tariff commitments and customs procedures, etc. 
5.3.  We have already submitted written answers to  the biggest part of questions to the WTO 
Secretariat.  
5.4.  At today’s session, the Kyrgyz delegation is ready to provide follow-up information in 
response to the statements by the Chairman, Discussant and WTO Members’ representatives.  
5.5.  Let me assure you that your comments and questions raised during the Trade Policy Review 
of the Kyrgyz Republic will be examined upon  return of the delegation to the country. The 
Government of the Kyrgyz Republic will continue its follow-up work to bring the trade policy in compliance with the WTO rules and regulations. 
5.6.  To present replies to questions from WTO Members which have been raised on the first day of 
the session of Trade Policy Review Body, please al low me to give the floor to the member of the 
Kyrgyz delegation, Mr. Kadyrkulov Mukai, First Deputy, Chairman of State Customs Service of the Kyrgyz Republic. 
MR.
 KADYRKULOV  MUKAI,  FIRST  DEPUTY,  CHAIRMAN  OF STATE  CUSTOMS  SERVICE  OF THE 
KYRGYZ  REPUBLIC 
5.7.  First of all, I would like to express gratitude to WTO Member-countries for your positive 
feedback regarding economic reforms in Kyrgyzstan . The Head of the Kyrgyz delegation, Minister 
of Economy T. Sariev, has already indicated that the key objective of the economic policy for 2013 and further on is to ensure the positive economic growth throughout all sectors of the country’s 
economy. With this view, the Government intends to implement the National Strategy of 
Sustainable Development of the Kyrgyz Republic over 2013-2017 as a real management tool in the next five years. For this purpose, we have de veloped the Program of Transition of the Kyrgyz 
Republic for Sustainable Development over 2013-2 017, which is currently being discussed in our 
Parliament. 
5.8.  Based on our economic projections we expect the real economic growth to average 7.5% a 
year during the next five years - until 2017 - assu ming Kyrgyzstan will enjoy sustained social and 
political stability. The most visible contribution to this growth will be provided by the services 
sector, while the construction sector’s contribution will double due to the anticipated allocation of largest national and regional projects. The growth is also forecasted in the agrarian and 
manufacturing sectors. 
5.9.  The above mentioned Government’s Program devotes much attention to the improvement of 
the investment climate, and includes a set of the following measures: 
- Creation of an institution for promotion of investments that will serve as a coordinating body 
 and operate on a Single Window principle; 
- Introduction of investment representatives at diplomatic missions that will promote 
 worldwide investments into our country; 
- Measures to ensure predictability and transpar ency of the investments-related legislation, 
 with an aim to ensure investor’s right for a stable and favourable legal framework; WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 24 - 
 
  - Development of the procedure for exercise of investor’s right for the choice of the most 
 favourable treatment in case of changes in legislation, through adoption of the relevant  normative acts; 
- Establishing legislative restrictions for adoption of normative documents that worsen 
 investors' condition. 
5.10.  To improve export capacity, the Export Promotio n Strategy has been drafted and it will be 
adopted by the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic . This strategy reviews the trade issues in the 
wider context, including the following issues: 
- Poverty reduction; 
- Gender policy; 
- Environment and other development issues. 
5.11.  The strategy has determined the priority sectors with high export capacity, such as tourism, 
fruit and vegetable sector, textiles and clothing, bottled water, meat and dairy products. The cross-sectoral strategies have been also developed in the area of trade financing, trade facilitation, 
quality management, trade information and promotion. 
5.12.  Many WTO Members have inquired about the fact that applied duties exceed the bound 
duties on 90 tariff lines. The Kyrgyz Republic has considered this non-compliance with its WTO 
commitments and will adopt measures to eliminate it. 
5.13.  We would like to note that the effective customs tariff for imported goods is liberal, and 
much lower than the commitments undertaken by  Kyrgyzstan in our accession process. The 
average customs duty rate is 5.04%, whereas the average rate under tariff commitments is 7.4%. 
Zero-rate customs duty cover 46.6% of all commodity headings. 
5.14.  With respect to the tariff regulation, in particular, the application of customs valuation of 
imported goods, we would like to mention that from the moment of accession of Kyrgyzstan to the 
WTO we have been implementing our commitments undertaken under Article VII of GATT, and 
under the Customs Valuation Agreement. The Explanatory note on customs valuation has been prepared and recently approved by Resolution  of the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic. 
5.15.  We would also like to point out that the Kyrgyz Republic recognizes WTO Members concern 
about lack of information and notifications on implementation of WTO SPS Agreement and enquiry point. The authorized bodies to implement SPS Ag reement have been previously appointed in the 
Kyrgyz Republic. Due to the transformation of th e Government’s structure, the draft Ordinance of 
the Government has been initiated to reallocate the functions of notification and enquiry point on 
S P S  m e a s u r e s .  I t  s h o u l d  b e  n o t e d  t h a t  t h i s  w o r k  h a s  b e e n  p e r f o r m e d  i n  c o o p e r a t i o n  w i t h  t h e  International Trade Center (ITC). In addition, the Integrated Information System of Technical 
Regulation to support the information exchange sy stem in the area of technical regulation has 
been developed. This system will also involve operation of TBT and SPS Enquiry Point. 
5.16.  Regarding WTO Members’ questions on accession of the Kyrgyz Republic to the Government 
Procurement Agreement, we would like to inform th at the review of the existing legislation on 
state procurement is in progress. The new draft Law is being considered and this law will be adjusted to the Government Procurement Agreement provisions. After enactment of this draft Law, 
the Kyrgyz Republic will renew negotiations to join the GPA.   
5.17.  With respect to accession of the Kyrgyz Repub lic to the Customs Union, I would like to point 
out that the speech by the Minister of Economy of  the Kyrgyz Republic, H.E. Mr. T. Sariev, has 
extensively covered this issue. Therefore, I would like to add only one aspect. The Government of 
the Kyrgyz Republic will work in cooperation with CU countries to find a solution to avoid potential 
problems associated with the change of our obligations in connection with the accession to the Customs Union within the framework of the provisions of Articles XXIV and XXVIII of the General 
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 25 - 
 
  5.18.  In conclusion, I would like to note that the Kyrgyz Government has provided its written 
answers to WTO Member’s questions. In the follow-up to this meeting, we will provide replies to questions that have been received recently. We are also ready to answer further questions that have been raised by the WTO Members. 
5.19.  Please let me present compliments to the Chairman, Ambassador Reiter, to the respectable 
discussant Mr. Kuneralp and to all WTO Members. I would also like to thank the Trade Policy Review Division, translators and all people that have been involved into the preparation and the 
conduction of this session. 
DISCUSSANT 5.20.  I should first like to welcome the delegation of the Kyrgyz Republic and the other 
participants in the meeting to the second day of th at country’s TPR. We had a fruitful discussion on 
the Kyrgyz Republic’s trade and investment policies during the first day of the review. We look 
forward to a good debate today with the help of the answers that the Kyrgyz delegation has provided to the questions that were put to it  and the comprehensive statement delivered on 
Tuesday by the Head of the Kyrgyz Delegation, Minister Sariev. 
5.21.  My overall assessment is that participants in the discussion appreciate the commitment to 
maintain an open economy and, in particular, respect its WTO obligations that has been 
demonstrated by the Kyrgyz Republic since it gain ed its independence more than twenty years and 
acceded to the WTO fifteen years ago as the first Central Asian nation to do so. The last few years that have been marked by the impact of the fina ncial crisis have been particularly tough for the 
Kyrgyz Republic but the country has shown admirable resilience throughout these difficult years. 
5.22.  The participants encouraged the Kyrgyz Republic to pursue the path of reform which is 
undoubtedly to its advantage as it will make it more attractive to investors, help it to integrate with the world economy, boost trading relations with its neighbours but also with the wider world 
and diversify its economy which is at the moment dependent to a very large extent on the 
production and export of a single product: gold.   
5.23.  Concerns were expressed by a large number of speakers with respect to the lack of 
transparency of certain measures. The Kyrgyz Repu blic should make more efforts to fulfil the 
notification requirements that are binding on all Members of this Organization. More transparency 
would also contribute to the Kyrgyz Republic’s efforts to attract investment. 
5.24.  Many of the speakers have praised the very low level at which the Kyrgyz Republic has 
bound its tariff. That in itself is a sign of the commitment to an open economy which has 
characterized the Kyrgyz policy since independence . However, concerns were expressed at the fact 
that many bindings have been breached and calls have been made for remedies to be found to 
that situation. 
5.25.  However, the most serious source of concern for participants in the Review relates to the 
implications for the multilateral trading system of the Kyrgyz Republic’s proposed accession to the 
Customs Union set up by Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. The fact that the Customs Union’s 
common external tariff is on average twice as high  as that of the Kyrgyz Republic means that 
considerable renegotiation will be required if the country proceeds with its intentions. We have naturally listened carefully to the explanations provided by Minister Sariev on Tuesday. Having 
listened to him, I certainly understand better the reasons that motivate the Kyrgyz Republic in 
following that path. By reminding us that the Russian Federation is also a Member of the WTO, he has –to my mind at least- indicated that Russia might help in dealing with the renegotiations that 
will be required. 
5.26.  Finally, I should like to say that I have been happy and honoured to act as a discussant for 
the TPR of the Kyrgyz Republic, a country with which my own shares common roots. I should like 
to commend the authorities of the Kyrgyz Republic  for the tremendous efforts they have made in 
preparation for this review, yet another sign of their commitment to an open multilateral trading system. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 26 - 
 
  UNITED  STATES 
5.27.  Considering the interest among WTO Members as expressed in a number of questions on 
the issue, we urge the Kyrgyz Republic to notify  the roadmap for acceding to the Customs Union to 
the WTO at the earliest opportunity. Many of the changes that will result from the roadmap will 
impact multiple aspects of their trade policy regime  (SPS, customs, TBT, etc. ). Further, we remain 
interested in the Kyrgyz Republic's changes to its tariffs in order to meet the common external tariff of the Customs Union and urge the Kyrgyz Re public to ensure it notifies those specific 
changes in a relevant tariff and import information to the WTO 6 months prior to the actual tariff 
changes so the Members can examine their interests under the relevant GATT XXIV:6 procedures. 
5.28.  We also remain interested in when specifically the Kyrgyz Republic will begin negotiations to 
join the GPA. We take note of the Kyrgyz's statement this morning regarding revisions to the 
government procurement law. We urge the Kyrgyz Republic to begin engagement on the accession 
process in light of its commitment in the country's accession protocol.  
5.29.  Finally, there appear to be several advance written questions for which we have not yet 
received an answer, including related to standards and other technical requirements, and 
intellectual property rights. Keeping in mind that answering our questions posed is an important benchmark for a successful TPR, we remain interested in written responses to these questions and 
have re-submitted those in writing along with our follow-up questions. 
EUROPEAN
 UNION 
5.30.  The EU would like to thank the delegation of the Kyrgyz Republic for their replies already 
provided to the advance written questions and we are hoping to receive the replies to the 
questions that the Kyrgyz Republic couldn't answer  before the meeting due to the time constraint. 
5.31.  The EU, like many of the WTO Members who spok e on Tuesday, is interested in the Customs 
Union perspective. The EU would like to submit an other question to the Kyrgyz Republic on that 
issue and while taking note of the information provided this morning, we would appreciate 
receiving the reply in writing in due course. 
5.32.  Furthermore, and like the United States pointed out, we believe that the notification of the 
roadmap for acceding to the Customs Union to th e WTO would further facili tate Members' future 
cooperation and work with the Kyrgyz Republic. 
5.33.  The EU would also like to point out that under the assumption that the Kyrgyz Republic is 
soon going to start adjusting tariffs to meet the common external tariff of the Customs Union 
taking into account any possible transition period, the Kyrgyz authorities will need to notify those 
specific changes and the relevant tariff and import information to the WTO 6 months prior to the actual tariff changes so that Members can examine the interests on the relevant GATT XXIV:6. 
5.34.  The EU is looking forward to the replies from the Kyrgyz Republic and hopes that this review 
has been a useful exercise. 
THE
 KYRGYZ  REPUBLIC 
5.35.  To begin, I would like to thank all the countries and all the people who worked with us here. 
As regards the questions, we have submitted written answers to all the questions sent to us and the statement of our Minister also gives some answers. 
5.36.  Let me address in a greater detail the accession of the Kyrgyz Republic to the Customs 
Union. We have drawn up a roadmap which is now considered by the countries of the Customs 
Union and other experts. We have created a working group that discusses all the items about accession and the roadmap has been prepared together with all the agencies. We have also 
consulted with the member countries of the Customs Union. At present, the roadmap is being 
examined by the Customs Union. Upon its adoption we shall take further st eps. As for tariffs, the 
question was when we would change them. As you know, Kyrgyzstan ad opted very low tariffs 
upon its accession, it was 10.7%. Our tariffs now are 7.4% of bound tariffs, they are very low 
because Kyrgyzstan is a country dependent on imports and we mostly import from neighbours: WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 27 - 
 
  Russia, Kazakhstan, China, Uzbekistan are original partners and our tariffs on trade with them are 
very low. Of course, you wrote in your questions that the Customs Union has a very high tariff, 10.5%. Russia has joined the WTO and is committed to changing on a yearly basis its tariffs so the customs tariffs will also change. The Republic of Kazakhstan is also engaged in negotiations on 
accession to the WTO and Belarus too. Their tariffs will also depend on these negotiations and on 
the consolidated common tariff. It is only on the ba sis of this that the Kyrgyzstan will be able to 
initiate negotiations because we have to look which tariffs we will have to raise and which we will 
have to lower. According to our analysis, we can raise or decrease our tariffs by 50%, but we don't 
know yet what kind of tariffs will operate when Kyrgyzstan joins the Customs Union. So, we cannot 
indicate a definite date. We should provide written answers to all the questions that we have received. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 28 - 
 
  6  CONCLUDING REMARKS BY THE CHAIRPERSON 
6.1.  This second Trade Policy Review of the Kyrgyz Republic has provided an excellent opportunity 
to improve our understanding of its trade and inve stment policies. I would like to sincerely thank 
H.E. Mr. Temir Sariev, Minister of Economy, an d the rest of the Kyrgyz delegation, for their 
important input, dialogue, and contribution throughout this exercise. I would also like to thank 
Ambassador Selim Kuneralp, Permanent Representative of Turkey to the WTO, for his interventions as discussant. The Kyrgyz Republic's choice of the alternative timeline that allowed 
them to reply to the questions in advance of th e meeting has been well appreciated by Members. 
We look forward to their replies to the addition al and outstanding questions, no later than one 
month after this meeting.  
6.2.  Members expressed strong appreciation for the ex traordinary efforts that the Kyrgyz Republic 
has made after the break-up of the former Sovi et Union to transform itself from a planned 
economy to a market based economy. Thanks to this, it recovered relatively quickly from an initial significant fall in trade and production and despite a number of obstacles such as being landlocked, 
geographic remoteness, dependency on former su pplier networks, and lack of energy resources. 
The Kyrgyz Republic promoted and embraced many  economic and trade reforms which allowed it 
to achieve macroeconomic stabilization, price liberalization, reverse a decline in output, and reduce 
poverty. During the review period GDP growth has been positive, albeit fluctuating, as in the case 
of inflation. This is a reflection of the fact that the Kyrgyz Republic obviously still faces many challenges. While the Kyrgyz Republic's total merchandise trade more than doubled during 2006-12, the current account remained in deficit and the export base remained narrow. Gold and 
unprocessed agriculture products accounted for the majority of exports. Members encouraged 
export diversification to act as a buffer to external shocks and to develop some of the country's untapped potential. The country's Export Development Strategy would be a key element to 
encourage diversification and reforms, and furthermore promote sectors with considerable 
unexploited potential, in particular tourism and hydropower. 
6.3.  Members commended the Kyrgyz Republic for being the first former CIS country to accede to 
the WTO in 1998, a clear expression of the country’s willingness to integrate in the global economy 
and the multilateral trading system, and for having committed itself to an open trade regime. It was noted that tariff protection is low, averaging 5%, in fact it is one of the lowest among WTO Members. Moreover, approximately 20% of tariff lines are bound at zero reflecting its adherence to 
the Information Technology Agreement and other ze ro-for-zero sectors. In addition, the Kyrgyz 
Republic has not applied anti-dumping or countervailing measures, nor has it resorted to the dispute settlement system. 
6.4.  Furthermore, beyond its overall open trade and investment policy, Members commended the 
Kyrgyz government for having continued to initiate reforms in a number of areas since its last review. Trade facilitating measures such as the "single window" and "paperless trade" initiative 
were highlighted. Improvements in the tax code, the pursuit of e-procurement, the reforms to 
competition policy, the reduction in mandatory standards and technical regulations, and greater alignment with international standards, and efforts to streamline certain bureaucratic practices, among other things, were also welcomed. 
6.5.  While noting many positive developments, Members pointed to a number of areas where 
further improvements could be made. The main areas for possible improvement brought up by 
Members during the review include the following points, and we take due note of the Kyrgyz 
delegation's constructive statement in this regard:  
 Tariff rates:  Members expressed concern that the Ky rgyz Republic had exceeded its bound 
tariff rates on approximately 90 tariff lines and stressed the importance that this should be 
rectified as it had systemic implications for the organization.  
 Transparency and  notification obligations:  Members underlined the need for the Kyrgyz 
Republic to urgently make new or revised notifications in a number of WTO areas to improve transparency and monitor WTO obligations. 
 SPS matters:  Members expressed concern about the lack of a WTO inquiry point and the 
frequent changes to the SPS framework. WT/TPR/M/288 • Kyrgyz Republic 
 
- 29 - 
 
   Non-tariff measures:  Members noted, with concern, that the Kyrgyz Republic has 
introduced or kept in place a number of measures such as prohibitions, seasonal duties, safeguard measures, import licences, and products subject to state trading during the period under review. 
 Regulatory matters such as intellectual property  and government procurement  were 
identified as areas that could be further developed. Some Members encouraged the Kyrgyz Republic to join the GPA, and noted the intention to resume accession negotiations once its 
revised domestic legal framework had been adopted. 
 Investment : A number of Members commented on the relatively low foreign direct 
investment (FDI) inflows and asked about the measures envisioned to improve this situation. It was noted that attracting FDI was a key component in further developing the 
economy, in particular with respect to diversifying its production and export bases. Referring 
to the country's 2009-11 Investment Strategy, th ere were a number of elements identified 
that, Members believed, could be further developed, such as eliminating administrative 
barriers, creating more favourable customs and tax regimes, and improving transparency 
and predictability. 
6.6.  Besides these more specific points, a key issu e of the future trade policy of the Kyrgyz 
Republic for many Members was the country's confirmed intention to join the customs union 
currently comprised of Belarus, Kazakhstan, an d the Russian Federation. Many questions were 
posed on the timing of such an initiative, the contents of the planned road map, the legal and 
regulatory changes envisioned, and the WTO processes to be followed, including with respect to 
notifications and compensation negotiations stemming from possible alterations of its tariffs. It 
was clear to Members that this initiative was a major endeavour of the Kyrgyz Republic that would potentially affect many aspects of its current trade policy and relations, and require substantial 
efforts on behalf of the Kyrgyz Republic in the near future. Members underlined the need to be 
fully kept informed of developments in this area and ensure the process complies with WTO rules and procedures. In particular they stressed the im portance of minimizing the impact on trade and 
maintaining the country’s level of openness. 
6.7.  In conclusion, Members praised the Kyrgyz Repu blic for its efforts to promote openness and 
reforms despite the many challenges it had faced in the past, and still faces today, and encouraged them to keep on this path. At the same time, recognizing that the trade policy of 
Kyrgyz Republic may be transformed as a result of joining the customs union, Members recalled 
that a WTO-consistent trade and investment regime was important to secure sustainable growth and diversify its economy.  
6.8.  Members warmly welcomed the second TPR of the Kyrgyz Republic and the information 
provided so as to take stock and assess the points of progress since its last review. The numerous questions posed and the participation of delegations in this meeting reflected Members' interest as 
a trading partner and their engagement in a number of bilateral development and aid 
programmes. In closing, I would like to thank the Kyrgyz Republic delegation, all the other delegations, the discussant and the Secretariat for this successful review. 
 
__________