The World Bank recently announced the results of its Joint Economic Research Program (JERP) in Kazakhstan, a project launched in 2003 to help the country achieve its development goals.

The bank provided policy analysis, strategic planning expertise, good practice options and capacity-building assistance in a wide range of areas, as part of the program. The World Bank provided help in macroeconomic and public financial management, social sector development, financial sector supervision, private sector development, and environmental protection.

"In the 10 years since its launch, the JERP has grown several-fold and proven an innovative instrument for bringing the World Bank's expertise to the benefit of the government's policy decision making and enhancing the institutional capacity of public agencies," Yerbol Orynbayev, the deputy prime minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan, said.

JERP resulted in improvements to budget and financial management systems, the development of a new tax code, avoidance of fiscally risky bailout strategies and the establishment of a committee for financial monitoring. Other results include increased transparency and accountability, a new employment program and social safety net system, and a project to build international standards and institutional capacity in the health sector.

The World Bank also found that assistance with business environment reforms facilitated an improvement in business entry and exit conditions, the payment of taxes, and the protection of investment rights.

The results showed that analytical work on improving industrial competitiveness through cleaner production helped to assess the costs of air pollution and the subsequent design of air pollution monitoring and emission registration systems.