The FBRK editorial team continues its series of articles dedicated to the analysis of the largest public procurements of 2024 in the regions of Kazakhstan.
Pavlodar Region attracted attention with its most expensive contracts in the areas of social housing and veterinary services. The two largest areas of expenditure in Pavlodar were related to the purchase of housing for socially vulnerable groups of the population.
SOCIAL HOUSING: NEARLY 8 BILLION TENGE
Two city departments in Pavlodar — the construction department and the department of housing relations — entered into a series of large-scale contracts in 2024 with Tempirtas-Stroyservice LLP for the purchase of social housing with a total value of nearly 8 billion tenge. A total of 486 apartments were purchased for socially vulnerable groups of the population.
The construction department purchased 288 apartments for the sum of 4.4 billion tenge in a building on Ladoga Street, 17. The city bought 54 one-bedroom apartments with an area of 35–50 sq. m at a price of from 9.9 to 11.77 million tenge, 99 two-bedroom apartments with an area of 50–95 sq. m costing from 14.4 to 23.5 million tenge, and 126 three-bedroom apartments with an area of 75–94 sq. m at a price of from 20.9 to 23.3 million tenge.
The department of housing relations entered into contracts for the sum of over 3.5 billion tenge for the purchase of 198 apartments: 36 one-bedroom, 100 two-bedroom and 62 three-bedroom. The majority — 127 apartments — are located in a neighbouring new build at Ladoga Street, 17/1.
The cost per square metre varied depending on the type of housing. One-bedroom apartments cost the budget from 245 to 276 thousand tenge per square metre, two-bedroom apartments — from 175 to 270 thousand, three-bedroom apartments — from 241 to 247 thousand tenge.
All the housing met modern standards: brick walls, suspended ceilings with a height of 2.5 metres, uPVC windows, metal front doors, full interior finishing. The apartments were handed over ready for occupancy with a two-year warranty.
The programmes were financed from different sources: the first via loans from the regional budget, the second via a targeted transfer from the National Fund of Kazakhstan. The housing was provided in the form of social rent to citizens who were on the housing waiting list.
The real result of the programme proved impressive. In March 2024, nearly 200 families received the keys to apartments at Ladoga Street, 17/1, and in September another 288 families moved into the building at Ladoga Street, 17. Among the recipients were orphaned children, large families and people with disabilities, some of whom had been waiting their turn for up to 19 years. The regional governor personally took part in the ceremonies to hand over the keys.
VETERINARY SAFETY: OVER 3 BILLION TENGE
The Department of Veterinary Services of Pavlodar Region entered into a series of major contracts with the subsidiary Pavlodar Regional Veterinary Station for a total sum of over 3 billion tenge. All the contracts shared one feature — intra-departmental deals between state institutions within the same system.
The largest contract concerned anti-epizootic measures costing nearly 2 billion tenge. A large-scale vaccination of over 6 million head of livestock against particularly dangerous diseases — anthrax, foot-and-mouth disease, rabies and other infections — was planned. During execution, the sum was reduced by 29.6 million tenge.
The second largest contract, for 669.7 million tenge, provided for additional payments to specialists working with pathogenic biological agents. These funds were directed to veterinarians who are in daily contact with the pathogens of deadly animal diseases.
Funds were also allocated for social programmes. Maintenance of stray animals cost 40 million tenge for an estimated 1800 animals; the main part — 26.8 million — went towards feed. A separate contract was concluded for 6.38 million tenge for the capture of stray dogs and cats using humane methods.
A curious case occurred with microchipping domestic animals. The initial cost was over 5.3 million tenge, but in the end the contract came to just 844 thousand tenge — a reduction of more than six times due to significantly lower demand for the service.
All contracts were concluded without tender based on the antitrust authority's conclusion regarding the absence of private companies capable of providing similar services.
CONCLUSIONS
The analysis of the largest public procurements in Pavlodar Region for 2024 revealed a contradictory picture: successful implementation of social programmes against a backdrop of systemic problems in the organisation of public procurement.
The main achievement was the resolution of the region's most acute housing problem. The scale of the programme is impressive — nearly 8 billion tenge made it possible to provide housing for hundreds of families who had been waiting their turn for decades. This is a clear example of how budget funds can deliver a real social result.
However, the implementation mechanism raises questions. The critical concentration of orders with a single contractor in the housing sector and intra-departmental procurement in veterinary services point to a lack of competition. In the absence of alternative suppliers, it is difficult to assess the justification of prices and the efficiency of budget spending.
The pricing policy requires particular attention. The spread in cost per square metre, from 175 to 276 thousand tenge even within a single programme, indicates a need for clearer pricing criteria. Perhaps strengthening competitive procedures would have made it possible to achieve the same results at lower cost.
Overall, Pavlodar Region demonstrates an ability to solve social problems, but needs to improve the mechanisms of public procurement. The balance between social effectiveness and economic expediency remains the main challenge for regional budget policy.
We remind you that we previously wrote about the largest public procurements of North Kazakhstan Region. You can read in detail about the capital's most expensive contracts via this link.
The FBRK editorial team will continue to monitor the situation in the field of public procurement and will present an analysis of other regions of the country in future articles.
To be continued...