Kazakhstan unveils new measure to attract foreign investment

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh officials unveiled at an April 22 government meeting the new Coordinating Council on Investment Issues, which is meant to help the country attract more...


External news in brief

Kazakh President Kassym-Zhomart Tokayev launched the Year of Kazakhstan in Uzbekistan April 15. The ceremony was attended by Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. Some of Kazakhstan’s brightest stars,...


National news in brief

Kazakhstan has created a tourist police force, the press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs has announced. Units have been created in Nur-Sultan, Almaty, and the...


Economic news in brief

Kazakhstan’s international gold reserves had decreased 11.8 percent to $27 billion by the end of March. The only greater decline (of 20.6 percent) happened in 2013. The...


Business news in brief

Baiterek Holding has joined the global initiative of the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) to implement the principles of socially responsible investment, reports Baiterek.gov.kz. The IFC...


Kazakh President visits Uzbekistan, assures current bilateral policies will continue

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev paid the state visit to neighbouring Uzbekistan April 14-15. The visit saw a number of intergovernmental documents signed in the area...


Kazakh-Lithuanian cooperation particularly strong in education, says Lithuanian diplomat

NUR-SULTAN – Bilateral cooperation has been gradually growing since Kazakhstan and Lithuania established diplomatic relations in the early 1990s. Cooperation in education has been the most vivid,...


Atyrau Region is working to improve investment climate, increase foreign investment, says governor

NUR-SULTAN – In this exclusive interview, Atyrau Region Akim (Governor) Nurlan Nogayev talks about continued efforts to develop major industries and SMEs in the region famous for...


Belgian travel company offers insights, experiences beyond clichés

NUR-SULTAN – The Caravanistan travel company is often the first stop for first-time and experienced travelers seeking visa, transportation, tour, lodging and attractions information about Central Asia....


Revolution of Choice

Three decades, roughly a generation, after the countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia emerged from the collapse of Communism and embarked on the path to market...


Almaty’s Esentai Mall seeks to go tax-free for tourists

NUR-SULTAN – Almaty’s Esentai Mall will be offering a system for value-added tax (VAT) refunds on purchases made by foreign citizens, said marketing director Olga Komissar at...


Hometown love can win Kazakh schoolchildren 10-day trip across the country

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh school children aged 11 to 15 now have the opportunity to win a 10-day trip across Kazakhstan by expressing what they love about their...


Nur-Sultan conducts first electronic land sublease auction

NUR-SULTAN – The first land plot sublease electronic auction was conducted in Nur-Sultan from March 20 to April 4. Eighty-one entrepreneurs competed for 10 land plots that...


E-commerce takes off in Kazakhstan, citizens double number of purchases

NUR-SULTAN – The number of e-commerce purchases in Kazakhstan jumped from 1.3 million in 2017 to 2.3 million in 2018. Government officials attribute the increase to the...


Ancient manuscripts, autograph sessions and master classes to pique readers’ interest at upcoming 2019 Eurasian Book Fair

NUR-SULTAN – Eurasian Book Fair 2019, featuring a book exhibition, presentations, talks, workshops and meetings with writers, will be held April 24-27 in the capital. The event...


Where can a Finn find like-minded folk in Pavlodar, Kazakhstan? Why, at the Finno-Ugric Ethno Cultural Centre, of course

NUR-SULTAN – The Finno-Ugric ethno cultural centre in the Pavlodar Region gathers nine ethnicities, providing an opportunity for its members to preserve their cultural heritage and share...


Kazakh National Bank reduces base rate as targeted inflation rate is to be met

NUR-SULTAN –The Kazakh National Bank announced April 15 it would reduce the base rate to 9 percent with a corridor of +/-1 percent effective immediately. The base...


Kazakhstan’s agro industry goes digital

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan will launch 20 digital and 4,000 advanced farms as part of a larger initiative to digitise the nation’s agro-industrial complex. “As a part of...


Want to explore Kazakhstan’s rich cultural history? Three new visitors’ centres will help

NUR-SULTAN – Cultural heritage tourism continues to develop in Kazakhstan, covering more regions and involving the country’s business community. As part of the Ruhani Zhangyru (Modernisation of...


New Nur-Sultan Emergency Health Centre meets international regulations for public health crises response

NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh government has opened an Emergency Health Operations Centre in the capital aimed towards emergency response preparedness, protecting the life and well-being of the...


Kazakhstan tests text messages as way to confirm receipt of state-administered medications

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan is testing a pilot programme using text messages to confirm patients receive medication paid for by the state. The programme was launched at the...


Kazakhstan opens application process for media, observers to June 9 early presidential election

NUR-SULTAN­ – Foreign observers and international organisations observing Kazakhstan’s June 9 presidential election must complete an accreditation process and can be accompanied by one interpreter, according to...


Kazakhstan ships first Caterpillar carrier tractor exports to Russia

NUR-SULTAN – The Semey Machine Building Plant in Kazakhstan is the only factory in the Commonwealth of Independent States that produces Caterpillar carrier tractors and this year...


Low-cost FlyArystan launches Almaty-Karaganda flights, announces contest for new airline hub

NUR-SULTAN – FlyArystan, Kazakhstan’s first low-cost airline, will launch daily flights from Almaty to Karaganda starting May 2, reported the company press service. Tickets for the 90-minute...


One of Kazakhstan’s 100 New Faces promotes home-grown style of mixed martial arts

NUR-SULTAN – Sergey An, the founder of Nomad MMA (Kazakh national martial arts), has been popularising the group worldwide for nearly 17 years with significant results. Eighteen...


Almaty, Japanese officials hope planting cherry blossoms will help their relationship flower

NUR-SULTAN – Almaty and Japanese officials recently planted the first of 100 cherry blossom trees along the Esentai River in Almaty as a symbol of friendship between...


Kazakhstan, Germany seek to increase trade, joint projects

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan used more than $183 million in German capital last year to implement four investment projects in trade, industry and renewable energy sources, reported the...


Bird watchers migrate to Almaty for Wings of Alakol festival

NUR-SULTAN – The Wings of Alakol bird watching festival will take place May 9-11 at the Pelikan Family Recreation Centre on Alakol Lake in the Almaty Region....


Kazakhstan increased exports nearly 25 percent in 2018

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan exported $68.3 billion in goods and services in 2018, a 24.2-percent growth compared to 2017, said Minister of Finance Ruslan Dalenov at the April...


17,000 runners to race in Almaty Marathon, one hopes to set Guinness Record

NUR-SULTAN – Seventeen thousand runners will participate in the Almaty Marathon April 21, 10 percent of whom are from 53 countries of the world including China, India,...