NUR-SULTAN – The Presidential Youth Personnel Reserve Forum was held in Nur-Sultan on June 12, reported the press service of the Kazakh Ministry of Information and Social Development.
The Presidential Youth Personnel Reserve Forum was held in an informal format at the Astana International Financial Centre. Photo credit: Daniyar Mukitanov.
The forum served as a platform for highlighting the results of the Presidential Youth Personnel Reserve initiative for the past year and a half, to exchange knowledge and experience and to receive feedback from representatives of government agencies.
The reserve was originally proposed by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev as a mechanism for creating a transparent and effective social elevator for talented youth.
Its goal is to open up unique opportunities for the most prepared and experienced young people of the country to take leadership positions in the public administration system and the quasi-public sector.
The pool of reservists, compiled of 300 specialists who were selected after a merit-based competition, could be used to search for candidates when vacancies for senior administrative and political positions become available.
“It is very important for us to open the way for active and patriotic youth. We will create all the conditions for them to gain experience working in responsible positions. Keeping continuity, we will prepare a new generation of state administrators. This year, two deputies of the Mazhilis were elected from among the reservists. Also, two citizens became members of the National Council of Public Trust,” said Tokayev in a written address to the attendees of the forum.
President of the Reserve and Head of the Forum’s Organizing Committee Alexander Danilov described the creation of the youth talent pool as an important step for the incorporation of a new wave of leaders into the state apparatus, which could lead to the improvement of the existing state of affairs in certain industries and save budget funds.
“Many of the reservists sincerely believe in the individual initiative that allows them to independently create projects in any field. Today’s forum was the result of just initiative, as it was organized with the support of private partners with the involvement of the reservists themselves,” Danilov told The Astana Times.
The forum comprised four main sections including public administration, human capital, urban development and urban studies and innovation and new technologies.
The young specialists presented their ideas and milestones in their projects ranging from support for children’s sports in the Chu region, creation of a Braille manual in Kazakh and increasing civic participation in the decision-making process.
Member of the reserve and Advisor to Kazakh Minister of Labor and Social Protection Adilet Zakiyev shared his experience of finding a job and bringing his fresh perspective to the making of a social services portal.
“One of the main activities of the advisor is communication with stakeholders. In my case, these are people with disabilities, non-governmental organizations and government agencies. To optimize the work, I created a number of dialogue platforms including a YouTube channel where I cover the work of the social services portal. These channels allow us to effectively receive feedback from people,” said Zakiyev.
Representatives of government agencies reflected on working with reservists.
“Recently, reservists began to offer various kinds of analytical materials and recommendations. This shows once again that they have great organizational and intellectual potential. Our task is not just to provide jobs. The most important thing for us is to have a constant process of mutual enrichment,” said Aide to Kazakh President Erlan Karin.
“The selected specialists are very strong. I can attest to this as an employer. Five people came to work for the Ministry of Education and Science and 17 more are on the board of directors of our universities. We see that many changes are happening because of you,” said Kazakh Minister of Education and Science Askhat Aimagambetov.
Kazakhstan’s Agency for Strategic Planning and Reforms Chair Kairat Kelimbetov suggested finding mentors for every member of the Presidential Youth Personnel Reserve to bring the ideas of the young specialists to the attention of the state. Kelimbetov explained that mentorship would allow the transfer of knowledge to the younger generation and would serve as an additional social elevator.
Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Yeraly Tugzhanov and Minister of Information and Social Development Aida Balayeva also spoke about the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the labor market and the development of certain vocations.
“We saw how important journalism is. In these new circumstances, projects that could be an incentive and impulse for the improvement of any particular area are very important for us. Therefore, I invite reservists to cooperate,” said Balayeva.
