More than 22,000 guests, 1.5 tonnes of chak-chak, 130 agreements: KazanForum summed up in Tatarstan

Photo: Динар Фатыхов

“Sometimes people ask how much the forum costs, whether it pays for itself”

Shamil Gafarov began summing up the results by saying that, despite the serious results and good reviews of KazanForum, Tatarstan, as one of the organizers, understands where it is not working. “We have something to improve,” the speaker emphasized. As he clarified later, it is necessary, among other things, to increase the amount of investments attracted thanks to KazanForum.

“Politically, we have already formed: many guests come to us at the federal center level, many international guests. We must gradually move to a more practical component, I would say, work more on the ground,” he said.

Speaking about the forum's payback, Shamil Gafarov emphasized: such events bring results in the long term.

“Sometimes people ask how much the forum costs, whether it pays for itself. How can I put it... Even if you build the coolest petrochemical complex, its payback in terms of profitability is five to six years. More guests come to us from Russia, foreign countries, and countries of the Islamic world. This yields results from year to year in attracting investment not only to Tatarstan, but also to the country as a whole. If you take all this into account, then, naturally, [the forum] pays for itself. Yes, maybe not tomorrow, not the day after tomorrow, not in a year, but it brings very important and necessary results in terms of the correct construction of the economy and the integration of the economy of Tatarstan and Russia into the countries of the Islamic world,” he emphasized.

Guests ate more than 1.5 tonnes of chak-chak and 400,000 ice cream

The number of KazanForum participants this year has increased by 25-30% compared to 2024, said Shamil Gafarov. “Moreover, we have grown in terms of international participants, which also says something,” the speaker noted.

In total, 148 business sessions were held within the framework of the forum, 8,440 experts took part in them, added Taliya Minullina, head of the Tatarstan Investment Development Agency (TIDA). In addition, various events — from a meeting of the OIC Ministers of Culture to a real estate exhibition — were held at various venues outside of Kazan Expo. Taking them into account, 22,500 people visited the KazanForum fields. During the summit, guests ate more than 1.5 tonnes of chak-chak and 400,000 ice cream.

The largest delegations — several hundred people — came from Malaysia, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Iran, the UAE, Senegal, and Nigeria. £African delegations were very well represented this year,” the head of TIDA emphasized. Entrepreneurs from Kuwait, Morocco, Egypt, Qatar, Bahrain, and Turkey took an active part in the forum.

This year, the forum was the most representative in its entire history, emphasized head of the expert department of the Tatarstan leader Igor Savelyev. The head of the republic, Rustam Minnikhanov, managed to hold 50 official meetings and events. Negotiations were held with most of the heads of foreign delegations and Russian regions. Based on their results, specific lists of instructions are being prepared, which are taken under control in the administration of the governor.

The organizing committee is aware of 130 agreements following the forum

130 agreements were signed at the forum, including 75 international ones, reported Taliya Minullina. According to her, this only concerns the agreements submitted to the organizing committee.

“There are agreements that were not included in our register, they were signed at the site behind closed doors. I myself took part in the signing ceremony of these agreements, which our business is not ready to make public today. You all know the international situation, now money loves silence,” the head of TIDA reminded.

In particular, the agreement was concluded by the Tatarstan Investment and Venture Fund and a private fund established by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry: it mainly concerns joint financing of projects in the field of technology and agriculture.

Many agreements were reached in the area of education: KFU, KSMU, the Academy of Sciences and others joined this work. A tripartite agreement was signed on the creation of Tatarstan 3D Printing Competence Centre. In addition, a number of Tatarstan manufacturers have agreed to enter Islamic markets.

Participants praise landscaping and the Kamal Theatre, complain about the busy programme

Guests traditionally noted the hospitality of the republic, cleanliness, landscaping of the city, high quality of infrastructure, the head of TIDA shared. “Certain complaints came from them too. They say: “Too many events have been held, we can't choose where to go, so much is happening," she added.

Complaints from guests were received regarding the registration system, but it was developed in accordance with safety requirements. “We can say that the registration system is complicated, but we can't do anything about it. There are certain rules, and we must adhere to them,” Taliya Minullina emphasized.

Guests expressed their wishes for an increase in the number of five-star hotels in Kazan — representatives of the Persian Gulf countries spoke about this most often. The issue of a shortage of Arabic-speaking staff was raised.

For walks around the city, foreign guests most often chose the Kazan Kremlin. The Al-Marjani Mosque, the National Library of Tatarstan, and the island-city of Sviyazhsk were popular. “And, of course, we hear a lot of admiration for the new building of the Kamal Theater,” says Taliya Minullina.