KAZAKHSTAN

UNVEILING MORE THAN JUST AT SCULPTURE AT THE CENTRAL HOUSE OF ACCOUNTANTS

Greg Hemphill, the Regional EDP Accounting Reform Director, Peter Gasca, the Regional EDP Finance Consulting Director, and Gulnur Kuvina, the Almaty EDP Senior Relationship Manager, were honored guests at the "Day of Accountants and Auditors of the Republic of Kazakhstan." The event, organized and conducted by the Central House of Accountants (CHA), was held on Saturday, 16 October 2004 in Almaty and emphasized the "Year of Accountancy" theme...

Stages of Introduction of ISO 9001: 2000 and Advantages for the Enterprises

...on October 14, 2004 Quality Management Center (QMC) conducted an Open House Day. Attendees familiarized with the stages of introduction of quality standard ISO 9001:2000 and advantages for enterprises...

The Quality Management Center (QMC) achieves International certification to ISO 9001-2000 Quality Management System standard

...The Quality Management Center (QMC), sponsored by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), has had two successful years of providing consultation to its clients in Kazakhstan for their efforts in developing and implementing quality management systems in accordance with the requirements of ISO 9001:2000...

CUSTOMER SERVICE - THE MISSING PIECE OF THE PUZZLE IN KAZAKHSTAN’S GROWING ECONOMY

"Ya - Rukovoditel" magazine, Almaty, by Ronald E. Ashkin ...Recently, a friend of mine went to a shop in Almaty to buy a new clothes iron. He found one that met his needs and bought it for 5,000 Tenge. When he returned home, he took the iron out of the box and plugged it in, only to find that his brand-new iron did not work ...

ISO 9001:2000: A NEW MANAGEMENT APPROACH

"InvestKazakhstan" magazine, Almaty, by Ramilya Mustafina ...In the context of the integration of the Kazakhstan economy into the global economy, the issues related to running a business are of vital importance. The Strategy of Industrial and Innovation Development requires large-scale technical upgrading and necessitates in implementing the quality management and environmental systems in accordance with the requirements of the international standards ISO 9001 and 14001...

Do You Really Need That Loan? Part IV

"BN" magazine, Almaty, July 2004, by Chad Clay. ...In my last two articles, I focused on how good Inventory Management can generate cash for your company...In this article, I planned to discuss customer and supplier management regarding payment or as we would say in accounting terms, Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable Management...

KYRGYZSTAN

Jack Getman

It is with great sadness that USAID EDP project shares the news that Jack Getman who worked as an IESC Volunteer with Pragma passed away on Friday, 19 November in Kyrgyzstan. His wife, Francis was with him at the time of his death. He was 73 years old.

Access tariffs to Kyrgyzstan's Internet market segment will be reduced thanks to new equipment received under the USAID Enterprise Development grant

A new project presentation on supply and launch of technological equipment to improve the performance of local Internet Providers was held on October 22, 2004. This initiative has been undertaken by the Association of Communications Operators based on the analysis of the local internet resource market.

EDP starring on the popular Kyrgyz TV channel - NBT

Download the media file to see the interview of Mr. Andrzej Shafernaker, which was broadcasted on NBT TV channel

FROM NOW ON, ENTREPRENEURS FROM CHUI OBLAST WILL BE ABLE TO USE THE SERVICES OF USAID ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT PROJECT RELATIONSHIP MANAGERS

The activity of the USAID Enterprise Development Project (EDP) will be expanded. Now, small and medium enterprises operating not only in Bishkek but also in the Chui Oblast will be able to use consulting services. In order to familiarize entrepreneurs with the services provided by EDP, a presentation was conducted jointly with the Jayil Association of Entrepreneurs for a group of companies operating in the Chui oblast. The event took place on September 22, 2004 at 11:00 a.m. in Kara-Balta Oblast Administration office.

Legal Practice. (Collection of material related to land legislation)

...In this connection the LARC project initiated and developed the current collection, which was presented at the 3rd National Seminar on the problems of implementing land legislation, organised at the end of 2003. The material is taken from the real practice of the lawyers rendering legal services to the rural population...

Kyrgyz businesses are increasing their activity in Kazakhstan. Here the entrepreneurs from the neighboring country can find the opportunities that they can only dream of at home.

June 9 - 22 2004, Alexey Ikonnikov, Almaty, "Continent" ...Today foreign investors are not anxious about working in Kyrgyzstan, which has the reputation of one of the most chronic debtors among CIS countries. Kyrgyz government and leading enterprises have not repaid very large sums of money to foreign financial organizations. Last year total state debt of Kyrgyzstan amounted to approximately 1 billion 800 million dollars including external debt of 1 billion 689 million dollars. This is more than twice the GDP of this small country. The great part of the debt is loans that were used to repay salaries to state employees, to cover payments to budget and to attempt to reanimate them. Naturally, foreign investors are not going to invest in these enterprises; they face different problem – how to return what they have already invested...

UZBEKISTAN

UZBEK ACCOUNTANTS ACHIEVE THE HIGHEST PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS

13 candidates from Uzbekistan have been awarded the Certified International Professional Accountant (CIPA) qualification, the top accounting qualification in Central Asia.

Hidden resources. You can discover them yourself, but it would be more appropriate to approach USAID/EDP specialists

The majority of complaints of present-day businessmen can be expressed in one phrase: “If I had this and that, I could make enormous things”. “That” and “this” could be anything you like – money, human resources, raw materials, premises, etc. These are all resources. The availability of the resources determines how well your business will be going. Often the problem is raised not because of a lack of the resources, but due to inability to identify and use hidden resources for development. Who hides them? We will talk about this later.

AUDIT DOESN'T HARM. Audit benefits for SMEs

Specialists of the USAID Enterprise Development Project believe that for SMEs to grow they need to:
• use fundamental financial disciplines which are necessary to manage cash flow and credits;
• have access to finances;
• be knowledgeable in taxation system, employment area and other legislation;
• acknowledge a need in long-term planning.

TAJIKISTAN

Tajik firm uses key monitoring ratios to fuel expansion

With the assistance of The Enterprise Development Center in Khujand, “Vavilon”, a freight forwarder, implemented a credit policy resulting in a decrease in Working Capital Days of 30% and a decrease in Days Sales Outstanding of 45%. This freed up the working capital needed to implement a Strategic Action Plan (SAP), which in turn resulted in a 95% increase in sales.

EDP Dushanbe opens its doors to clients and partners

On the 21st of May 2004 the USAID Enterprise Development Project (EDP) in Tajikistan offered an Open House to the Tajik public and the international community. Over 85 guests met with EDP’s Enterprise Improvement Practice (EIP) clients and enjoyed the displays of a wide range of Tajik products. Many potential clients also attended the event, learning how their businesses can benefit from EI services. As a result, Dushanbe’s Relationship Managers are already developing several Strategic Action Plans (SAPs) for new clients who attended the event.

TURKMENISTAN

Turkmen Accountants and Project EDP partner to Further Professional Qualifications

...US Agency for International Development (USAID) and EDP firmly believe that a transition to International Accounting Standards (IAS) from those of Soviet-era times within both sectors serves as the foundation for a more transparent and enabling business environment...

EDP/Ashgabat Experiences Enormous Growth in Trade Facilitation Assistance in June 2004

RTP/Ashgabat increases its trade efforts to date by 371% in June 2004 alone. Vladislav Erniyazov, Regional Trade Specialist for project EDP/Turkmenistan, facilitated three deals worth $355,000 in June, thus bringing total amount of deals facilitated over the past 7 months to $485,850. This is a dramatic rise when compared to past RTP results stemming from 2002-2003, where RTP/Turkmenistan facilitated only three deals worth $24,000.