ASTANA – Construction on a new school in Astana funded by the United Arab Emirates launched on Aug. 27 with a ground-breaking ceremony.
Mayor of Astana Imangali Tasmagambetov (R) at the groundbreaking ceremony of the new school. Photo: Kazinform.
The school, which is to accommodate 1,200 primary and secondary students and was the result of agreements between the presidents of Kazakhstan and the UAE, is to be named after President of the UAE Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, said Akim (Mayor) of Astana Adilbek Dzhaksybekov at the ceremony.
Total investment in the project by the UAE is $13 million, the Astana administration reported. The school is part of the UAE’s effort to support education in Kazakhstan, Deputy Minister for Presidential Affairs and Deputy Chairman of the Khalifa bin Zayed Foundation Ahmed Juma Al Za’abi said at the ceremony, according to The Nation.
“The financing of such social projects as the construction of a new educational institution in Astana by the United Arab Emirates indicates the high level of friendship and cooperation between our countries. Primarily, this was made possible through trustful relations between the heads of our states,” Dzhaksybekov said at the ceremony, the akimat reported.
Al Za’abi commented that ties between the UAE and Kazakhstan were growing, particularly in education and health. He said that assistance from the UAE was being well received by the people of Kazakhstan and that the government was international in implementing other development projects.
Dzhaksybekov noted that the Khalifa Foundation has funded several projects in Kazakhstan, including the Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Grand Mosque, which accommodates 1,000 worshippers, and a 200-bed hospital, according to a report by the WAM Emirates news agency.
After the ceremony, Al Za’abi presented a book on the UAE and its achievements under the leadership of Sheikh Khalifa that had been prepared by the government of Kazakhstan, according to WAM.
Dzhaksybekov, Deputy Minister for Presidential Affairs and Deputy Chairman of the Khalifa bin Zayed Foundation Ahmed Juma Al Za’abi, Ambassador of the UAE to Kazakhstan Suhail Al Ketbi and other local and foreign officials attended the groundbreaking ceremony.
