The monthly working group is attended by a variety of HR specialists from law, oil & gas, consumer products and telecommunications firms. With Mr. Menger’s addition as Chair, the group will continue to raise the profile of HR management through group initiatives focused on meeting compliance with legislation, talent attraction and recruitment, performance management and retention. The group will also work with legal advisors and labor authorities to ensure improvement of legislation and administrative procedures while sharing information on the implementation of best HR practices.

The Corporate Social Responsibility Working Group seeks to engage policymakers and businesses on how to best mobilize social capital in Kazakhstan. The group is currently launching the second year of its Journalism Workshop project. The workshop's goal is to raise journalists' awareness of CSR with the goal of training a leading cadre of journalists to cover CSR-related events in a balanced fact-based fashion. This fall, the working group intends to invite guest speakers to discuss their companies' CSR work in Kazakhstan and to highlight the CSR projects of member companies on the AmCham website.

The ITC Working Group seeks to promote the development and improvement of Kazakhstan's technological infrastructure by facilitating interaction of both market players and their customers, sharing information, coordinating activities, conducting research and, most importantly, helping members increase their customer base. The group includes member companies specializing in everything from tax and legal consulting to education, not to mention IT and Telecom companies themselves. Additional functions of the group include:

• Promoting ICT best practices through information sharing

• Helping AmCham members expand sales of ICT goods and services

• Assisting in the development of member companies new to Kazakhstan's ICT market

• Discussing and formulating common positions on policy and regulation

• Acting as a forum to discuss and review ICT developments in industry and government

The Education and Training Work Group seeks to find innovative ways to improve the education and training programs in primary and secondary schools, at universities and post-secondary institutions, and at Kazakhstani companies and organizations. To achieve this mission the group seeks to: identify strengths and weaknesses of current education and training programs; leverage national and international resources to improve existing education and training programs and coordinate efforts with other AmCham working groups to develop new education and training in Kazakhstan where needed.

While Kazakhstan's path to WTO membership is requiring it to lower or remove many tariffs altogether, many non-tariff barriers that significantly impact business operations still remain. The Trade & Customs Working Group provides our members with the opportunity to discuss major non-trade barriers and customs regulatory issues while working to promote greater cooperation with the Kazakhstan customs administration. The working group's focus areas for 2009 will include: 

• Trade facilitation

• Harmonization of customs administrative procedures and rules of origin

• E-customs

• Customs valuation

• Customs standards

The Foreign Investment Working Group's mission is to represent the interests of the business community in Kazakhstan, identify problems encountered by investors and proactively work with senior officials in the Kazakhstan government to address these issues. Topics on the agenda vary with suggestions from participating members. Meetings in the past have included updates from the Commercial Section for the U.S. Embassy, discussions on Kazakhstan's anticipated WTO accession and the draft law on Procurement. More recent meetings have included discussions on cross-border trade, the impact of the new tax code and cooperation with the Foreign Investors Council.

With the Kazakhstan tax code currently undergoing important changes, the Tax Working Group aims to be at the forefront of these and other important issues regarding taxation. The group meets on a monthly basis and conducts discussions of legislative amendments and issues of practice and application of tax legislation. Topics discussed over the past year include deductibility of provisions, transfer pricing, holding company regimes and challenges to foreign investment created by tax treaties. Over the coming year, the group will also work to submit relevant recommendations and proposals to the public-private sector dialogue on taxation.

The Group aims to be at the forefront of the major tax developments and other important issues regarding taxation. The group will meet on a quarterly basis to conduct discussions of legislative amendments and issues of practice and application of tax legislation. The first meeting took place in April 2009 to examine the opportunities and challenges brought forth by the new Tax Code as well as the overall fiscal environment, which may lead to increased frequency and focus of tax audits in the coming period.
Over the next year, the group will also work to submit relevant recommendations and proposals to the public-private sector dialogue on taxation.

The Atyrau Tax Working Group is a relatively new Group started under leadership of the AmCham Resident Representative in Atyrau, Russell Maynard, Deloitte Partner for Atyrau/ Aktau. Its membership to date represents 6 multinational energy and oil and gas service companies operating in the Atyrau region. As a Group focused on the oil and gas industry, discussions have centered on draft amendments to the tax code and their impact on subsoil operations. Of particular interest are audit procedures and audit enforcement trends.  

The Atyrau WG is still growing and expects to expand through participation from other Atyrau-based companies. Going forward, the Group intends to serve as a useful forum for companies in this region to share knowledge and discuss tax related issues unique to the oil and gas industry.