DOES KREMLIN RESHUFFLE AUGUR REAL CHANGE?
In the wake of President Nazarbaev’s announcement of 10 percent first quarter GDP growth (see “RFE/RL Newsline,” 29 March 2001), the Kazakh government warned on 29 March that GDP growth for this year is unlikely to exceed 4 percent, while industrial output is expected to grow by 8 percent, Interfax reported. The corresponding figures last year were 9.6 percent and 14.6 percent year-on-year. The cabinet’s priorities for this year were identified as achieving stable economic growth with low inflation, improving the investment climate, reducing unemployment and raising the population’s real income. The government will also seek to strengthen the nascent Eurasian Economic Community formed last year on the basis of the CIS Customs Union.
