ABSTRACT
Hosting international events became a new branding tool for the national government of Kazakhstan and an incentive for Almaty and Nur-Sultan governments to attract special purpose national transfers. The chapter aims to contribute to the discussion on effective investment of public finances in urban development and outlines the challenges related to the implementation of national projects in cities constrained by centralised fiscal redistribution. By examining the city governments of Almaty and Nur-Sultan, the author analyses the roles of these governments in the allocation of national projects. The assessment of national projects was carried out based on a programme evaluation approach. The chapter shows how the efficiency of national public investment in cities was constrained by the lack of city governments’ capacities to plan and manage national projects. City governments adjusted development plans to supply national projects with land, infrastructure, and other resources, even when it led to negative economic, social, environmental, and cultural outcomes for the local population. The national projects put city governments in the middle of conflicts with citizens that they had no ability to solve. By prioritising the implementation of national projects, city governments have started to distance themselves from their main role of addressing local needs.
