ASTANA, Kazakhstan, November 23. The Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan is working on the creation of special economic zones at the airports of Astana, Almaty, Shymkent, Aktau, Aktobe, and Karaganda, Trend reports.
This was stated during a meeting with Transport Minister Marat Karabayev with the participation of executive authorities and aviation enterprises.
It was noted that work is also underway to identify other regional airports where a special economic regime is needed.
These measures are aimed at stimulating the direction and redirection of cargo flows to Kazakh airports and, in general, at the development of the country’s transport infrastructure.
The creation of special economic zones at airports is a common international practice. It performed well in the air harbors of Dubai, Singapore, Shannon, Riyadh, etc.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Construction of Kazakhstan, special economic zones operate in 12 regions of Kazakhstan. At the same time, there are all conditions for including airport territories among them.
At the end of 2022, Kazakh Airlines transported 11 million passengers, which is 17 percent more than in 2021.
The growth dynamics continue this year: 9.9 million passengers were transported from January through September, which is 25 percent more than the same period in 2022.
Airports in Kazakhstan processed 70,700 tons of cargo, which is 25 percent more than the same period in 2022.