Kazakhstan plans to introduce AI-based precision farming and smart farms

At a government meeting, Minister of Agriculture Aidarbek Saparov outlined plans to use artificial intelligence in the agricultural sector. These include introducing precision farming technologies and smart farms, creating a single industry platform and building a data lake. The data lake will consolidate data from the sector's information systems and make it possible to forecast and model development scenarios for the industry.

To provide farmers with long-term preferential financing, the government plans to combine budget and commercial funds. Under the Baiterek holding, 270 billion tenge has been allocated for such loans this year and 220 billion tenge for 2027. To increase production of domestic tractors and combines, 50 billion tenge in budget loans needs to be allocated through KazAgroFinance this year.

The country currently has three deep grain processing plants with a combined capacity of 510,000 tonnes of raw materials per year. Six major projects with a combined processing capacity of 5.8 million tonnes of raw materials per year are planned by 2029. They will produce starch, gluten, bioethanol, amino acids and other products.

The minister also said that an additional 50 billion tenge is proposed for 2027 for preferential loans to buy farm animals under the program replicating the experience of North Kazakhstan Region.