Social Assessment Helps Ensure Benefits of Agricultural Privatization for Kazakh Farmers

Abstract

The Government of Kazakhstan has requested support from the World Bank for an Agricultural Post-privatization Assistance Project to support the development and commercialization of privatized farms and commercialization of privatized farms and agroenterprises in two areas of the country and thus improve rural productivity and incomes. The social assessment (SA) of this project aims to understand the roles and status of different stakeholders in the privatization and restructuring process, and to identify ways to maximize benefits and mitigate possible negative impacts of the project. This notes summarizes the implementation of the process, the key social development concerns, the institutional and organizational issues, and the recommendations of the SA.