The World Bank Group's Managing Director and CEO Sri Mulyani Indrawati visited Kazakhstan on Thursday to discuss a new partnership agreement.

Indrawati encouraged the government, President Nursultan Nazarbayev and Prime Minister Karim Massimov to continue macroeconomic management and diversification of the country's economy.

With the help of other financial institutions, the World Bank will be involved in designing programs that will facilitate growth and promotion of the private sector in Kazakhstan. Programs will also aim to develop additional capital from institutional and human sources.

“It’s really fascinating to see the dynamics of the development in Kazakhstan,” Indrawati said. "Moving forward, it is critical for the country to continue the implementation of stability-oriented macroeconomic and financial sector policies, and to sharpen the focus on higher productivity in the non-extractive sectors, thus contributing to shared prosperity.”

For central Asia as a region, Indrawati said cooperative water management will play an important role in economic development and addressing climate change is crucial.