Since joining some of the international financial institutions (IFIs) in the early 1990s, Kazakhstan has received $4.28 billion in investments from those institutions.
Kazakhstan is the largest country in Central Asia and possesses sizable amounts of oil and gas, so much of the lending is in the extractive industries. In 2006, 53.4 % of the World Bank Group’s lending was in the Energy and Mining sector. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) invest proportionately less (13% and 28%, respectively) in the extractive industries
IFI financing of extractive industries is a major concern for civil society. BIC works with Kazakh civil society to monitor energy projects, paying particularly close attention to issues of contract and revenue transparency, as well as environmental standards.