Funding for research and development has also increased since the mid-1990s, in particular as a result of financing directed to KazAgroInnovation since 2008. Compared to research and development, agricultural education continues to receive significantly lesser funds (although these expenditures have been steadily rising). Infrastructure expenditures varied during the analysed period, with the highest spending taking place between 2001 and 2003 when a large project to improve irrigation and drainage systems was implemented. However, towards the end of the 2000s, the funds directed for infrastructure improvement decreased substantially. Figure 2.30 illustrates the importance of each component in the total support to the agricultural sector in Kazakhstan.