Kazakhstan opens literature and art centre in Madrid

ASTANA – The Kazakh Embassy to Spain and Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) recently opened the Centre of Kazakh literature and art in Madrid. The opening ceremony...


Kazakhstan to introduce regulations to combat overpricing of medications

ASTANA – The Ministry of Healthcare will introduce a new model in January to regulate the price and circulation of medicines and medical devices, said Lyudmila Byurabekova, chairperson of...


Kazakh driver Sultan Ibragimov makes impressive Formula 4 test debut

ASTANA – Fourteen-year-old Sultan Ibragimov will take part in the 2019 Formula 4 South East Asia Championship after completing the first test on the Sepang International Circuit Nov. 26-28...


Karaganda region opens first major distribution and logistics centre

ASTANA – The inaugural stage of Alfarukh, the first wholesale distribution and logistics centre, has been completed in the Karaganda region as part of the Plan of the Nation,...


Almaty’s thermal springs season is heating up

ASTANA – Although the Shonzhy village in the Almaty region’s Uyghur district is located far from the Almaty city, the village is a popular tourism destination. The village has...


Digitising construction, housing will reduce CO2 emissions and heating costs, says Kazakh minister

ASTANA – Implementing smart heat metering devices in houses across the country, a project associated with Kazakhstan’s digitisation, will reduce citizens’ expenses, said Minister for Investment and Development Zhenis...


Kazakh ‘#Explorestan’ tourism branding seeks to take sting out of ‘Stan’

ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s tourism brand was presented to the general public Dec. 7 at Astana’s Travel Media Talks international forum and will soon be submitted for state approval. Tourism...


World chess champion debuts how-to-play book in Kazakh language

ASTANA – World chess champion Dinara Saduakasova recently presented her debut book, “Learning to play chess,” in the capital. The volume, which shares her experience and skills, is the...


Astana Opera adds Chopiniana and Scheherazade ballets to its repertoire

ASTANA – Astana Opera made a gift to capital residents and guests, presenting the premiere of the one-act ballets Chopiniana (Les Sylphides) and Scheherazade by choreographic art reformer Michel Fokine.   The premiere, staged...


Kazakhstan Temir Zholy places Eurobonds worth 170 million Swiss francs

ASTANA – Kazakhstan Temir Zholy recently placed five-year Eurobonds worth 170 million Swiss francs on the Swiss Stock Exchange and the Astana International Financial Centre’s (AIFC) Exchange. The Eurobonds...


Targeted state support is key to engaging youth in employment, education, says expert

ASTANA – The Kazakh youth population aged 16 to 24 will increase 30 percent by 2030 and will require more targeted state support in entering and remaining in employment,...


Kazakh satellites hitch ride on SpaceX launch vehicle

ASTANA – Two Kazakh satellites, KazSciSat-1 and KazSTSat, were launched Dec. 4 at 12.32 a.m. Astana time aboard the Falcon 9 from the Vandenberg U.S. military base in California,...


Public space development will enhance Astana living standards, civic engagement, say experts

ASTANA – Developing public indoor space will meaningfully improve citizens’ wellbeing and activism in Kazakhstan’s cold and fast-growing capital, said local and foreign experts at Urban Forum Kazakhstan’s Dec....


Aktobe Football Club board member calls for change in limit on foreign football players

ASTANA – More than 16 years have passed since Kazakhstan entered the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) family. In that time, the level of the country’s game should...


Seven agreements worth $480 million inked at Almaty Invest Forum

ASTANA – Seven agreements worth $480 million were signed as part of the sixth Almaty Invest Fоrum. A favourable investment climate, highly developed human capital and tourism make the...


Poet Saule Doszhan introduces Kazakh life stories

ASTANA – Writer and poet Saule Doszhan, named an Honoured Art Worker of Kazakhstan in 2015, is the author of books based on touching true stories that raise social...


Think tank presents recommendations for new EU strategy for Central Asia

LONDON – Closer dialogue, focus on concrete results, a realistic, pragmatic and state-by-state approach and “soft power” initiatives were among the key recommendations included in the Eurasian Council on...


Yelikti ski resort is perfect destination for beginner, expert skiers and snowboarders

ASTANA – The impressions from the vast steppes surrounding the capital offer little hope for winter sports such as skiing and snowboarding. That’s why many of its residents are...


Green Cat Art Laboratory encourages self-expression and care for nature

ASTANA – Green Cat Art Laboratory started in 2011 as a hobby to make handmade products. Seven years later, it has turned into a business. Specialising in wooden pins,...


Ruhani Zhangyru: Nazarbayev’s Model

The recent article by the President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, titled “The Seven Facets of the Great Steppe”, which is in the continuation of his earlier article “Ruhani Zhangyru...


Shymkent Oil Refinery completes modernisation, improves fuel and environmental standards

ASTANA – The Shymkent Oil Refinery recently completed a modernisation allowing it to meet Euro-4 and Euro-5 fuel standards while making the refinery more environmentally friendly. The $1.8 billion...


Kazakhstan Highway Research Institute develops new road survey system

ASTANA – The Kazakhstan Highway Research Institute (KazNorDII) has developed a road asset management system. Beginning with the East Kazakhstan region, the database will use machines and up-to-date digital...


A new look at Kazakhstan’s history builds bridges to the future

Winston Churchill is among those credited with the observation that it is the victors who write the history books. He was reminding us that the version of history with...


Economy News in Brief

Kazakhstan is having a record year for investments in environmental protection, finprom.kz reports. During the first 10 months of 2018, 61.1 billion tenge (US$163.55 million) has been invested, almost...


Business news in brief

Kazakhstan-based transformer manufacturer Alageum Electric will sign an agreement to purchase goods not yet produced with KEGOC, Chair of Alageum Electric’s directors’ board Yerkebulan Ilyasov told the energy forum....


IAEA purchases low-enriched uranium for LEU Bank in Kazakhstan

ASTANA – The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has signed contracts to purchase low-enriched uranium (LEU) to start operation of a Low-Enriched Uranium Bank in Kazakhstan in 2019. The...


Annual diplomatic Christmas bazaar raises funds for charity

ASTANA – The 11th annual Diplomatic Christmas Charity Bazaar organised by the Ambassadors’ Spouses Association (ASA) took place Dec. 2 in Astana. Forty-six embassies, charity organisations and schools sold...


External News in Brief

Kazakhstan’s Daneliya Tuleshova took sixth place at the Junior Eurovision song contest hosted by Minsk, Belarus. It was Kazakhstan’s debut at the contest, which gathered junior vocalists aged nine...


National news in brief

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev instructed the government to increase pensions 7 percent and social allowances for persons with disabilities and loss of a breadwinner 5 percent from Jan. 1,...


Kazakh President urges larger role for NGOs in Kazakh society

ASTANA – Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev stressed at the Nov. 27 eighth Civil Forum of Kazakhstan the importance of reducing barriers to interaction between the state and society. The...


Central Asian self-governance enabled by greater regionalism, say scholars

ASTANA – Central Asia is shedding its image as a mere domain of competition among great powers and increasingly asserting its agency, said a Swedish scholar in a recent...


West Kazakhstan region supports small businesses, productivity growth

ASTANA – The West Kazakhstan region ranks third in the country with a 40-percent share of the medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the gross regional product. This indicator was achieved...


Growing bilateral relationship noted at celebration of Omani National Day in Astana

ASTANA – The ambassador of Oman to Kazakhstan spoke with The Astana Times about political, economic and cultural relations between the two nations during the Nov. 21 celebration of...


Kazakhstan and UAE boost production projects, discuss aerospace industry cooperation

ASTANA – First Deputy Prime Minister Askar Mamin and United Arab Emirates (UAE) Minister of Presidential Affairs Sheik Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan​ met Nov. 25 in Abu-Dhabi  to...


Kazakh Healthcare Ministry proposes reducing confidential abortion age to 16

ASTANA – Kazakh Vice Minister of Healthcare Lyazzat Aktayeva suggested reducing the age when adolescents can have an abortion without their parents’ permission (confidentially) to 16 during a Majilis...


Kazakhs and Cossack communities share historical roots, cultural similarities, says community leader

ASTANA – The Akmola Department of Cossacks serves as the region’s ethno-cultural organisation for Cossacks, who number approximately 100,000 in Kazakhstan. The similar-sounding ethnonyms Cossack and Kazakh in the...


Romania to mark 100th anniversary of Great Union with cultural celebrations

ASTANA – As Kazakhstan celebrates its First President’s Day Dec. 1, Romania will be celebrating 100 years since its Great Union. The date marks the union of all of...


Kazakhstan to streamline rehabilitation and bankruptcy procedures

ASTANA – The Kazakh government approved the draft law “On amendments to some legislative acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on improving rehabilitation and bankruptcy procedures” at the Nov....


Sharipova forced to postpone fight for WBC champion belt

ASTANA – Kazakh boxer Firuza Sharipova has postponed her fight with World Boxing Council (WBC) champion Eva Wahlström of Finland originally scheduled for Dec. 22 in St. Petersburg, Russia....


Mangistau region: land of 362 saints and historical monuments

ASTANA – The Mangistau region, located in south western Kazakhstan, is known for a myriad of historical sites. Though the region is better known for its vast oil and...


TEDxAbayStWomen, TEDxYouth@AbaySt promote openness, provoke conversation that matters

ASTANA – Almaty residents and guests will have a chance to immerse in the TED Talk experience, famous for its “ideas worth spreading” mission, as the city will host...


Language policy programme brings positive results, considers Kazakh terminology update

ASTANA – The state programme on language development and functioning is in full swing throughout the country. More than 42,000 people have attended language courses at the training centres...


PetroKazakhstan sponsors open youth tennis tournament in Shymkent

ASTANA – More than 70 children participated in a recent open tennis tournament in Shymkent. The tournament was sponsored by PetroKazakhstan Oil Products (PKOP) as part of an ongoing...


Almaty hosts national electronic sports finals, winners advance towards $5.5 million competition in China

ASTANA – The winners of the Nov. 11 Kazakhstan national final of the World Electronic Sports Games (WESG) cybersports world championship in Almaty will participate in the online Central...


Kazakh research institute to enact comprehensive plan to counter cancer mortality

ASTANA – The Kazakh Research Institute of Oncology and Radiology has prepared a 35 billion tenge (US$93.88 million) action plan to reduce cancer mortality rates for the next year,...


Construction to begin in Astana in 2019 on Kazakhstan’s second World Trade Centre

ASTANA – The World Trade Centres Association (WTCA) will begin construction in late 2019 of Kazakhstan’s second $200-million World Trade Centre (WTC), reports Tengrinews.kz. A WTC is a building...


Local pharmaceutical plants to provide majority of essential medicines, increase production

ASTANA – Local pharmaceutical plants will provide 1,144 essential medicines for free in 2019, according to a Nov. 23 report by the Central Communications Service. The list includes drugs...


Fab Lab at Nazarbayev University promotes material innovation, tech savvy

ASTANA – Nazarbayev University’s Fab Lab (fabrication laboratory), is a place where innovative solutions are nurtured with the help of engineering and fabrications tools. The lab, part of the...


Astana considers designated parking for electric vehicles, introduction of electric buses

ASTANA – Astana’s 2018-2020 comprehensive plan to make the capital a greener city calls for designated parking spaces for electric vehicles at all socially significant facilities, administrative buildings and...


Kazakhstan presents proposals for new EU Strategy on Central Asia

BRUSSELS – The Belgian capital hosted the Nov. 23 European Union-Central Asia ministerial meeting attended by the foreign ministers of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan and the European...