Kazakhstan: Fostering Productive Innovation Project

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The objective of the Fostering Productive Innovation Project for Kazakhstan is to promote high-quality, nationally relevant research and commercialization of technologies. There are five components to the project, the first component being development of the knowledge base for innovation. The component aims at promoting high-quality, nationally relevant research and development and advanced human capital activities through the provision of Junior Researcher Group Grants, Senior Scientist Group Grants, and PhD Research and Training Grants. The second component is the innovation consortia. The objective is to promote collaboration among existing scientific research institutes and design bureaus and scientific and engineering profile laboratories in Kazakhstan (i) in respect of research and development activities for purposes of improving the productive sectors of the Borrower’s economy, through the provision of Productive Sector Consortia Grants, and (ii) in respect of the delivery of social services, including improving the livelihood of the urban and rural population, through the provision of inclusive innovation consortia grants. The third component is the consolidation of the technology commercialization cycle. The objective is to complement the existing financial instruments and solutions suitable to different stages of start-up company development. The fourth component is the strengthening coordination of the national innovation system; enhancing the capacity of the existing institutional structures. Finally, the fifth component is the support project implementation. The component will support the Project Implementation Unit (PMU) in carrying out the project management, monitoring and evaluation, awareness raising activities, and capacity development.