ASTANA – Kazakhstan will receive a loan of 42 billion tenge (US$80.9 million) from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development to expand high-speed internet in rural areas, reported the press service of the Mazhilis, the lower house of the Kazakh Parliament.
A plenary session of the Mazhilis. Photo credit: mazhilis.parlam.kz
Mazhilis members ratified the loan agreement at a plenary session on June 18. The document was signed on Dec. 12, 2024.
The Accessible Internet project aims to connect over 1,000 large villages to fiber-optic broadband, targeting the so-called “last mile” – bringing reliable Internet directly into every home. The initiative is expected to benefit nearly 2.3 million rural residents nationwide.
The loan is issued in Japanese yen at an interest rate of 1%. The project will be completed before debt repayments commence in 2028. The debt will be repaid by 2035.
The total investment is 84 billion tenge (US$161.8 million), with half of it sourced from a loan and the other half from private telecom operators.
Kazakh Minister of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry Zhaslan Madiyev announced that Starlink satellite internet will become available in Kazakhstan in the third quarter of 2025. The company is currently finalizing pricing and technical issues, including the construction of a landing point and point of presence.
However, he noted that satellite internet will be slightly more expensive than fiber-optic services.
