LocationsUNDP launches two financial instruments to support farmers in Kazakhstan
November 6, 2025
The United Nations Development Programme in Kazakhstan (UNDP) and National company Food contract corporation JSC signed an agreement to strengthen partnership in sustainable agriculture, develop agri-food value chains, and introduce innovative financial tools to support farmers.
A key focus of this partnership is the introduction of agroecological incentives and financial instruments for farmers transitioning to environmentally friendly farming practices, such as cultivating legumes and perennial grasses, adopting sustainable agrotechnologies, implementing crop rotation, and diversifying planted areas.
"By joining forces with government institutions and international partners, we can significantly enhance Kazakhstan’s food security and help farmers adopt environmentally sound and financially sustainable farming practices,"
said Katarzyna Wawiernia, UNDP Resident Representative in Kazakhstan.
The first pilot projects are planned for three regions in Northern Kazakhstan, where farms will voluntarily participate in testing two new financial tools.
The first financial instrument is a long-term forward purchase of legume crops (lentils, chickpeas, peas, beans). This mechanism enables farmers to sign three-year contracts with guaranteed product off-take. One of the key conditions is a commitment to follow scientifically based crop rotation and environmentally friendly farming practices. According to UNDP experts, this approach combines market stability with environmental objectives and lays the foundation for diversifying the agricultural sector, reducing dependence on monoculture, and easing pressure on soil resources.
The second instrument is a commodity credit scheme for growing perennial grasses. Farmers receive seeds in advance and repay the credit with a portion of their future harvest. This model helps develop feed production, restore degraded lands, and strengthen the country’s food security. In the long term, it will enable the creation of a reserve feed fund to support livestock farming and increase the resilience of agro-systems to climate shocks and emergencies.
Each pilot project participant will be supported by research institutions that will help develop personalized land management plans as well as monitoring and evaluation frameworks. This system ensures not only financial sustainability but also an objective assessment of environmental impact—from improving soil structure to reducing CO₂ emissions.
In parallel with the pilot, analytical work is underway to assess the export potential of priority crops—legumes and forage—with the aim of entering international markets. This will pave the way for “green” production and supply chains where sustainability becomes the new quality standard.
Together, these two mechanisms aim to create a new model of green agri-financing, where economic incentives are directly linked to environmental outcomes—restoring soil fertility, reducing land degradation, cutting emissions, enhancing farm resilience, and developing local value chains.
"Working with UNDP will not only expand support tools for agricultural producers but also introduce new approaches to financing and product marketing. This partnership lays a solid foundation for scaling sustainable solutions in Kazakhstan’s agricultural sector,"
emphasized Assylkhan Dzhuvashev, Chairman of the Board of National company Food contract corporation JSC.
Under the long-term forward mechanism, approximately nine deals are expected with farmers covering about 9,000 hectares. For the commodity credit instrument, around ten deals are planned for about 2,000 hectares of perennial grasses.
The introduction of these innovative agroecological financial instruments has been made possible through the project aimed at promoting a sustainable agricultural production system and preserving the ecosystems of Northern Kazakhstan’s landscapes (FOLUR). The project is implemented by UNDP in Kazakhstan in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan and with financial support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF).
