Planning of National Transport Infrastructure
In the Islamic Countries
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The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for every transport project is mandatory to apply.
According to the Ministry for Investment and Development (2018), no project can be
implemented before the EIA is approved by the Environmental Protection Agency.
3.1.4. Procedural Factors and Financing
As mentioned earlier, Nurly Zhol as the State Program of Infrastructure Development is
developed to implement the Address of the President to the citizens, showing a top-down
approach of the infrastructure planning process in Kazakhstan. The Program is developed by
the Ministry of National Economy in close cooperation with the Ministry for Investment and
Development and knowledge support from consultants, research institutes, surveys, and
technical assistance from IFIs.
The development process of Nurly Zhol is summarized in the following diagram.
Figure 12: Development process of the State Program (Nurly Zhol)
Stakeholders’ participation
Public consultations are an inevitable part of the planning process in Kazakhstan and are
accessible via the respective ministry’s website. However they are not sufficiently user-centered
nor pro-active (OECD, 2014). For instance, online consultation with the public lacks an explicit
call for comments, clear timelines, consultation period and guidance, as well as a single online
consultation platform listing all draft regulations (OECD, 2014).