At a government briefing, Kazakhstan's Minister of National Economy Serik Zhumangarin addressed the question of how citizens can meet basic needs amid rising prices and stagnant wages, infohub.kz reports.
According to the head of the Ministry of National Economy, wage growth is a key component of increasing household incomes, and it all depends on the sector in which a person works.
"Wages in the transport and warehousing sector rose by 28.8%. In agriculture, wages increased by 18.6%, in construction by 14.4%, in financial and insurance activities by 16.5%, and in industry, the average monthly wage rose by 11.4%. Sectors where wages did not increase include education, arts, information and communications, and professional, scientific and technical activities. But these are sectors where the state is largely present. However, we recently raised wages for civil servants," said Serik Zhumangarin.
Regarding food prices, the minister added that prices for socially significant food products fell by 0.1% for the first time.
"Food prices are rising, but the growth rate has slowed. In September, prices for so-called socially significant food products (SSFP) fell by 0.1% for the first time. In the first week of October, SSFP prices are also declining. Therefore, we are working to keep price growth low or, as in this case, negative," the minister added.