Kazakhstan's Economy Has Grown Nearly 4.5 Times Since Independence

According to Khabar 24, citing official data, Kazakhstan's economy has grown almost 4.5 times in real terms since independence. Over the past seven years, GDP per capita rose more than 1.5 times to 15 thousand dollars, up from barely over 700 dollars in the early 1990s. Officials say industry, agriculture, construction and services drove the growth.

The number of employed people has risen to nearly 9.5 million, and the number of active businesses to 2 million. Over the last seven years, more than 10 trillion tenge was directed to supporting entrepreneurship. The population now exceeds 20.5 million.

Foreign trade has grown 16 times since independence, and in the first eight months of 2026 it totalled 103 billion dollars, according to the Bureau of National Statistics. Exports exceeded 60 billion dollars and imports reached just over 42.5 billion. Economist Zhanat Nurgaliyev attributed this to favourable world prices for oil, metals and uranium, and to about 80 export items. Foreign companies have invested over 150 billion tenge in recent years.