Astana to sign MoU with AP for building new capital

After Singapore, Japan and China, Kazakhstan will be the fourth country that will partner with Andhra Pradesh in building its new capital city Amaravati.
Astana, Kazakhstan's capital, and Andhra Pradesh will sign a memorandum of understanding "in a few months from now" on working together on building Amaravati while a joint working group with representatives from both sides will be soon be constituted to "work closely and share experiences to build a world-class capital", stated a release from the Chief Minister's Office here.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, on the second-day of his visit to Kazakhstan, today held talks with Astana Mayor Asset Issekeshev on the capital construction, the release said.

"Astana is a very young, modern and functional city. I am very impressed by the way it has been built. I have seen almost the entire city and found it very beautiful," Naidu told Issekeshev.
The CM asked the Mayor to share details about the architects, designers and builders involved in the construction of Astana.
The Mayor said, "More than 150 architects worked for ten years on the Astana project. We will work with you (in building Amaravati). We will share our experiences in building Astana so you could learn and avoid the mistakes we committed".

Stating that he was interested in "working closely" with Astana, Naidu invited the Mayor to visit Amaravati.

"We have to chalk out a roadmap on how to take our co-operation forward. A clear time frame is needed for this," the CM said.
The Mayor also made a pitch for Indian investments
into his country saying Kazakhstan had "a lot of opportunities" for businessmen from AP.
Issekeshev said they were keen to increase cooperation in tourism and industrial sectors besides investments in IT and renewable energy sectors.
He also told the visiting CM that he would speak to their Transport minister for possibly introducing a direct flight between Astana and Amaravati that could boost tourism.
The Mayor invited Naidu to attend Expo-2017, an international exposition inAstana next year.

Earlier in the day, Indian Ambassador to Kazakhstan Harsh Kumar Jain hosted breakfast for the CM and the AP delegation.
Jain briefed them about Kazakhstan in general and Astana in particular, besides listing out possible areas of co-operation between the two sides.
Naidu then led his delegation on a visit to the 97-m tall Bayterek Tower for panoramic view of the core capital.