ANALYSIS OF ISSUES AND BARRIERS TO DOING BUSINESS IN THE REGIONS OF KAZAKHSTAN

The article aims to assess the regulatory burden small and medium-sized businesses face in the republic’s regions from the company’s opening to its closure. The primary method is an analysis of the results of the sociological survey conducted within the framework of a research project sponsored by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The authors conducted the sociological survey through questionnaires combined with in-depth interviews, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of the issues. As a result, the authors found that an overwhelming number (85 %) of business leaders consider Kazakhstan attractive for business and investment. The authors assessed four key indicators to understand the high barriers to doing business. Companies’ surveys showed that business registration is quite accessible. However, expert interviews confirmed that they experienced the most significant difficulties with staff recruitment. The authors analyzed the access to infrastructure (electricity, water, land, and logistics) separately, which entrepreneurs assessed at an average level. Also, the authors identified the problem of accessing bank capital for business and the need to reduce the tax burden for new companies and startups. In addition, the authors tried to evaluate the financial aspects of doing business in Kazakhstan and the impact of digitalization on business development. Thus, research attempted to identify the main problems and barriers to evaluating the ease of doing business in Kazakhstan’s regions. We concluded that the business environment in the country is «far from perfect», and the authorities have a lot of work to do to improve it. Keywords: Kazakhstan’s regions, EDB, Investment, Business environment, Business leaders, Survey, Barriers to business.