Kazakh PM Treks to Kyrgyzstan, Discusses EAEU, Tourism

ASTANA – On Sunday, July 19, Kazakh Prime Minister Karim Massimov paid a one-day visit to Kyrgyzstan where he discussed bilateral cooperation with his counterpart Temir Sariyev, as well...


Almaty 2022 Bid Confirms Readiness of Accommodations

ASTANA – As a lead-in to the July 31 vote in Kuala Lumpur, where the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will select the host city for the 2022 Winter Games,...


Round-the-World Cyclist Arrives in Kazakhstan, Hopes to Raise Money for Elder Charity

ASTANA – Shayl Majithia is one of the most recent in a long line of travellers to pass from Europe to Asia via Kazakhstan’s great landmass. Like his earliest...


Astana Launches ‘Smart’ City Projects

Astana Mayor Adilbek Dzhaksybekov was recently briefed on several city smart projects, such as smart clinic, smart school, smart street lighting, smart payments as well as with current work...


Kazakh Military Pilots Intend to Take the Prize at Aviadarts 2015

Pilots of the Air Forces of Kazakhstan are planning to win the coming international competition Aviadarts 2015. “Kazakh pilots will participate in this competition for the first time, so...


Airports, Trains and Train Stations to Become Accessible for Citizens with Disabilities

Kazakh airports, trains and train stations will soon become accessible for people with disabilities, according to Minister of Health and Social Development Tamara Duyssenova. The bill on Amendments and...


President Nazarbayev Congratulates Kazakh Citizens On Oraza Ait

ASTANA – Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev wished the people of Kazakhstan spiritual accord, good health and prosperity in honour of the Oraza Ait (Eid al-Fitr) holiday on July 17....


President Seeks More Efficient EXPO 2017 Preparation

President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev recently proposed to appoint a special representative of the Government, who will take responsibility for the EXPO 2017 preparation process. “It is already evident...


Two Young Kazakh Singers Win International Competitions

Kazakh singer Dimash Kudaibergen won the 24th International Art Festival Slavic Bazaar 2015 organised in Vitebsk, Russia. He also received a special Lira prize for his performance. The winner...


Zhan Shuak Award Ceremony Highlights Achievements of People with Disabilities

ASTANA – The 6th annual Zhan Shuak award ceremony for people with disabilities took place at the Astana Music Hall on Dec. 3 as part of Boundless Opportunities 2013,...


New Small Aircraft Produced in Kazakhstan Could be Boon for Farmers, Entrepreneurs

ALMATY – Foreign experts are calling Arai Agro, Kazakhstan’s first domestic light aircraft, a “flying SUV” for its size and agility. The plane was demonstrated for domestic and international...


Kazakhstan’s Southern Border Holds Hidden Tourism Potential

On Kazakhstan’s southern border high in the Tien Shan Mountains lies an enchanting paradise home to rarely seen petroglyphs, majestic ibex, brown bears and a myriad of wildflowers that...


Kazakh Surgeons Demonstrate Microsurgery Development

ALMATY – The recent fifth Congress of Kazakh Surgeons demonstrated new possibilities in transplantology. The surgeons, together with their colleagues from Tomsk University, first replaced a damaged joint in...


Legally-Binding Global Agreement Is Most Effective Way to Tackle Man-Made Climate Change

Today, across the world, the embassies of the U.K. and Germany are joining with the EU delegation and other countries to highlight the challenge we all face – climate...


In Kazakhstan, Unique Opportunity for Inter-Religious Dialogue


Tax Partnerships among Reforms to Boost Investment Attractiveness, Expert Says

ASTANA – Kazakhstan is open and keen for tax reform, said Wayne Barford, senior advisor to the International Tax and Investment Centre (ITIC), who visited in early February to...


Doomsday Clock Must Be Reversed. We Can Do It

For nearly 70 years, the Doomsday Clock has shown how close our world is to global catastrophe. The news that on January 22 the clock’s timing has been pushed...


Kazakhstan Opening Itself to Africa

 ASTANA – Kazakhstan is working to expand its cooperation with African nations across the board, Kazakh Minister of Foreign Affairs Erlan Idrissov told  a number of African journalists who...


Kazakh Granny Discovers Whole New World at 80

ASTANA – For Lena Toxanbayeva, the saying “it is never too late” has a literal meaning. The 80-year-old grandmother, who had never been beyond Kazakhstan’s borders until last year,...


Country’s Rural Development Programme Helps Almaty Farmers to Use Innovative Technologies

The Almaty region farmers have demonstrated the collected harvest that has been grown by innovative technologies, zakon.kz reported on June 22. “Today we are holding a seminar titled Technology...


Kazakhstan Joins OECD Schools of Government, Plans Improvements to Government Officials’ Training

ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s Academy of Public Administration has joined the Global Network of Schools of Government of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and a delegation from...


National Bank Widens Tenge’s Trading Band

ASTANA – National Bank Chairman Kairat Kelimbetov announced widening the tenge’s trading band against the U.S. dollar at a Central Communications Service briefing July 15. The lower limit of...


Kazakh Quartet Becomes Laureate of International Contest

ASTANA – Almaty-based quartet Qazaq Quartet was named a laureate of the June 14-21 International Contest Award in Padua, Italy, liter.kz reported. The young musicians, Timur Talanov (violin), Eldar...


Iran Nuclear Deal Positive News for Kazakhstan, World, MFA Says

ASTANA – The Foreign Ministry of Kazakhstan issued a statement on July 15 In which it welcomed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action over the Iranian nuclear programme approved...


Translated American Children’s Novel Presented in Almaty

“Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie,” a book aimed at children and young teenagers by American author Jordan Sonnenblick, was presented in the Sapargali Begalin State Children’s Library in Almaty, according...


Yoga Gaining Popularity in Kazakhstan

It would be early to rate the popularity of yoga in Kazakhstan from five years ago, since the idea of this ancient practice was not welcomed very well in...


Young Artist Brings Turkic Culture to the World

ASTANA – Alibek Koylakayev, a leading designer-artist in one of the Astana souvenir companies, has been in Kazakhstan for only two years, but in that time has made a...


Kazakhstan, Germany Agree to Expand Energy Cooperation During Astana Forum

ASTANA – The first Kazakh-German forum on energy and infrastructure networks was held July 14 in the city. The delegations, headed by Kazakh Ministry of Investment and Development First...


UAE Falcons Released into Their Natural Kazakh Habitat

ASTANA – This May saw another release of falcons from the United Arab Emirates into their natural habitat in western Kazakhstan, thanks to the Sheikh Zayed Falcon Release Programme,...


Almaty Zoo to be Reconstructed by End of the Year

The Almaty Zoo will undergo a 483 million tenge (US$2.6 million) facelift beginning in December, according to Almaty TV. Part of the funding will come from zoo patrons. The...


Nearly 400 families Receive Affordable Housing in Uralsk

Nearly 400 families in the Uralsk region’s Priuralye area received keys to state-funded affordable housing apartments as part of the country’s Astana Day celebrations. Arman Utegulov, deputy akim (governor)...


Number of Innovative Enterprises Projected to Increase 20 Percent by 2020

ASTANA – By year 2020, the share of innovatively active enterprises is expected to increase to 20 percent of all enterprises, announced Laura Sadykova, deputy director of the Department of...


Promising Young Pianist Beisembayev Wins First Cliburn Junior Competition

Seventeen-year-old Kazakh pianist Alim Beisembayev won $10,000 and first place at the first Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition on June 28 at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, United...


Kazakh Davis Cup Squad Heads to Australia for Quarterfinals

ALMATY – After a brilliant victory over Italy, Kazakhstan’s Davis Cup team is readying for its fourth Davis Cup quarterfinals appearance in five years. They will face Australia July...


Kazakh Wrestlers Take Numerous Medals at Asian Junior Championship

ASTANA – Kazakh Greco-Roman wrestler Dastan Zarlykhanov from the Akmola region won gold in the 55-kilogrammes category at the July 9-12 2015 Junior Asian Free Style, Greco-Roman Style and...


An Intimate Glimpse into Kazakhstan through the Eyes of a Peace Corps Volunteer

WASHINGTON, DC – As Janet Givens watched the terrible events of September 11, 2001, unfold, and the subsequent U.S. “global war on terror,” she felt she needed to do...


Carbon Monoxide, Lack of Oxygen Cause of Sleeping Sickness, Official Announces

ASTANA – The main cause of the mysterious “sleeping sickness” that has been plaguing the Krasnogorsk and Kalachi villages in the country’s Akmola region is the combined impact of...


Kairat Eliminates Former Euro Champions, Other Kazakh Clubs Less Lucky as Europa League Starts

ASTANA – The European football season started for three Kazakh contenders with the first qualification round of the Europa League on July 2 and 9. Two of them, FC...


When Disaster Strikes, Women and Girls Are the Backbone of Resilience

World Population Day 2015 reminds us that women and girls are particularly vulnerable in humanitarian emergencies – but also play an active role in helping their communities cope with...


100 Steps Programme Matches Ambition with a Practical Roadmap

It does not matter who or what you are, but bold ambitions are never enough on their own. They always have to be matched with a practical programme to...


Nazarbayev Attends SCO, BRICS Summits in Ufa

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev travelled to Ufa, Russia July 9-10 to take part in the fifteenth summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and the seventh summit of BRICS, which...


Economic News in Brief

National oil and gas company KazMunayGas (KMG) plans to sell 50 percent of its shares in the consortium developing the giant Kashagan oil field, Reuters reports. KMG owns a...


Business News in Brief

French supermarket chain Carrefour, the second largest retailer in the world, will be expanding into Kazakhstan, Forbes.kz reports. The first Carrefour store is expected to open in Almaty in...


External News in Brief

Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Nepal to the United Nations Durga Prasad Bhattarai and Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan to the United Nations Kairat Abdrakhmanov signed a Joint...


National News in Brief

Kazakhstan’s newest airline, Qazaq Air, was presented on July 6 at Astana International Airport. The airline is fully owned by the Samruk Kazyna Sovereign Welfare Fund and will fly...


Poll Finds 71 Percent Approval Rating of Kazakh Judges

ASTANA – A new study by the UN Development Programme in Kazakhstan in cooperation with the Centre for Legal Policy Research and the Centre for Public Opinion Research found...


Yevgeny Primakov: “Kazakhstan Is Capable of Handling Everything”

At the end of June in Moscow, people bid final farewell to Yevgeny Maksimovich Primakov, a prominent Russian politician of global significance and scholar with colossal credibility in the...


Bolashak’s Next Five-Year Mission Supports Domestic Development Plans

ASTANA – The end of the Bolashak Presidential Scholarship’s five-year plan has coincided with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s election campaign call for a development push based on his proposed...


Kazakhstan Continues Liberalising Visa Regime, Works to Facilitate EU Entry for its Citizens

ASTANA – First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Rapil Zhoshybayev said Kazakhstan was both moving forward with further liberalisation of its visa regime for foreigners and working...


Almaty Café Opens with Mentally Challenged Employees

ASTANA – The Training Café, an eatery staffed by 20 individuals with mental illness, opened recently in Almaty. The project, financed by the Soros Foundation, is organised by the...