Kyrgyzstan has launched 61 industrial enterprises simultaneously, as the country moves to expand domestic production and strengthen its industrial sector.

President Sadyr Japarov attended the opening of a new bean-processing facility in the Bakai-Ata district of Talas Region, according to Sputnik Kyrgyzstan.

The project is valued at 200 million soms (about $2.29 million) and has an annual processing capacity of up to 40,000 tons.

Japarov said that the new facility will allow crops grown by farmers in the Talas region to be processed domestically rather than primarily exported as raw materials.

Some 60 facilities, including plants producing construction materials and processing agricultural products, were launched online as part of the initiative.

Around 50 more industrial facilities are expected to open by the end of the year. Japarov said the projects would help create new jobs, increase the range of locally produced goods and strengthen Kyrgyzstan’s export potential.