The National Association of Cooperatives and Other Economic Organizations of Kazakhstan (NACOFEC) recently signed a cooperation agreement with China's Zhejiang Institute of International Business & Economics (ZJIFE) to jointly launch a dedicated capacity-building training programme for the Kazakh business community. The first session opened successfully in Almaty in April 2026, marking an important step in practical cooperation between the two countries in vocational education and trade promotion.
The training focuses on the core challenges Kazakh enterprises face when entering the Chinese market, covering market compliance, brand building, digital marketing, business communication and trade practice. A professional faculty team from ZJIFE was dispatched to Kazakhstan to teach, balancing systematic theory with hands-on practice. The first course ran for about two weeks and attracted enterprise representatives from various industries across Kazakhstan.
ZJIFE has long been active in international trade, e-commerce and vocational technical education, with rich experience in corporate training and an extensive industry resource base. As the national representative body for Kazakhstan's cooperative sector, NACOFEC has long worked to help member enterprises go global; this cooperation is an important extension of its service mandate.
Background
As the Belt and Road Initiative advances, economic and trade exchanges between China and Kazakhstan have grown increasingly active. Kazakhstan has great export potential toward China, yet many enterprises face practical constraints — information asymmetry, differences in regulatory systems, and insufficient marketing capacity — when entering the Chinese market. The cooperation between NACOFEC and ZJIFE responds directly to this real-world need, aiming to lower the market-entry threshold for Kazakh enterprises through knowledge empowerment.
Through knowledge empowerment and capacity building, the threshold for Kazakh enterprises entering the Chinese market can be effectively lowered, injecting lasting momentum into bilateral economic and trade cooperation.
Outlook
Both sides indicated they will continue to deepen cooperation on the basis of the first session, exploring regular follow-up trainings, enterprise matchmaking and project cooperation, to build a more solid platform for exchange and collaboration. NACOFEC will coordinate resources on the Kazakh side, while ZJIFE will continue to provide professional support, jointly serving the long-term development of China–Kazakhstan economic and trade relations.
The successful launch of this training fully reflects the shared will of China and Kazakhstan to jointly advance trade facilitation and talent internationalization under the Belt and Road framework, and demonstrates both sides' firm confidence in deepening economic and trade cooperation and opening a new chapter of mutual benefit.