Articles by Aida Haidar 

ASTANA — A new survey by TikTok and the Atameken National Chamber of Entrepreneurs found that more than 70% of surveyed companies use the platform for business at least once a month, while 88.3% reported a positive effect on attracting new customers. The study also found that more businesses associate TikTok activity with a share…

ASTANA — President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev proposed a new three-year moratorium on inspections of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and called for a more systematic investment policy in his state-of-the-nation address on Oct. 28. “Investment efficiency should be assessed by the number and quality of commissioned production facilities, as well as their actual contribution to the…

ASTANA – South Korean burger chain Mom’s Touch plans to open at least 50 outlets in Kazakhstan over the next decade as it expands into Central Asia through a franchise agreement with local food group Shin-Line, The Korea Herald reported Oct. 26. The first outlet is expected to open in the first half of 2027.…

ASTANA — Kazakhstan’s Alatau City has broken ground on Iconic Complex, a multifunctional development set to become the city’s first skyscraper, with Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev attending the ceremony on Oct. 26, according to the Prime Minister’s press service.  The project, with investments exceeding $800 million, includes two towers measuring 272 and 78 meters.…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s FlyArystan has launched direct flights between Astana and Yining on Oct. 26, becoming the largest foreign airline operating in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Kazinform reported. An Airbus A320 operated flight FS 7989, which departed Astana International Airport at 7:55 a.m. The flight took two hours and 25 minutes. Upon arrival in…

Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina strengthened her position at the top of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings after winning the Ningbo Open in China on Oct.26, Tengri Sport reported. Rybakina secured the title by defeating Canada’s Leylah Fernandez 6-2, 6-2 in the final, successfully defending her Ningbo Open championship.  Rybakina’s ranking points increased from 9,196 to…

Kazakhstan remains the region’s economic anchor and its largest recipient of foreign capital. At the same time, Montfort Eurasia’s Investor Perception Report 2026 for the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (U.S.) suggests that Central Asia and the Caucasus are moving beyond a traditional foreign direct investment story toward a broader capital markets story.…

ASTANA — The question of AI is especially relevant for Kazakhstan, which is betting big on the technology and preparing for the transformation ahead. AI is already reshaping economic models, changing the nature of work and creating new forms of competition between countries. It is also forcing governments to ask a bigger question: what kind…

ASTANA — The latest PISA 2025 results reveal a tension likely to grow more important in the years ahead: how can a country prepare young people for an economy shaped by AI without allowing technology to displace the foundational skills that make knowledge useful in the first place? For Kazakhstan, the question is particularly relevant.…

ASTANA – Director and Partner of Slovenian engineering company RIKO Janez Škrabec has been coming to this part of the world for nearly four decades. His first visit to the Soviet Union was in 1988, when Kazakhstan belonged to a completely different political and economic reality. Today, he is returning to Astana, which is increasingly…

ASTANA – What if a song, a game, a digital creator or a piece of intellectual property could be treated not only as a cultural product, but as an investable asset? For Kazakhstan’s emerging creative economy, that shift in thinking could be as important as the creative output itself. The question was at the center…

ASTANA – We want to take it out of the unregulated area and make it work, because it works whether we want it or not,” National Bank Chairman Timur Suleimenov said during the plenary session Rewiring the Architecture of Finance at Astana Finance Days 2026 on Sept. 9, capturing the regulatory dilemma at the center…

ASTANA — The United States should establish permanent normal trade relations with Kazakhstan and offer greater economic opportunities rather than pressure the country to choose between Washington, Moscow and Beijing, Congressman Jimmy Panetta said during a Hudson Institute discussion on Sept. 2, as Washington weighs how to deepen its economic and strategic engagement with Central…

ASTANA – Central Asia and the Western Balkans may be geographically distant, but they are not economically or strategically disconnected. Their positions between major European and Eurasian markets create opportunities that have yet to be fully developed, according to Prof. Dr. Zijad Bećirović, director of the International Institute for Middle Eastern and Balkan Studies (IFIMES)…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s cashless economy is entering a new stage as virtual cards become more common among active users and QR payments overtake bank cards at point-of-sale terminals. The shift suggests that digitalization is no longer simply about replacing cash with cards, but increasingly about replacing the physical card itself with a smartphone-based payment interface.…

ASTANA — As competition between the world’s major powers increasingly reshapes trade routes, energy flows and diplomatic alignments, Kazakhstan’s strategic value may lie not in choosing sides, but in remaining able to connect several sides at once, experts said at a policy discussion in Astana. The discussion on Aug. 21, organized by the CFive Intellectual…

ASTANA — For decades, Kazakhstan’s connectivity strategy was measured in highways, railways and pipelines. Today, that vision is expanding. As global competition increasingly depends on the movement of data alongside the movement of goods, the country is investing in a new layer of strategic infrastructure — one designed not to carry cargo, but information. Among…

ASTANA — People in Kazakhstan consumed an average of 1.5 kilograms of sugar per person per month in 2025, a level that has barely changed since 2023, according to the Bureau of National Statistics. But while household consumption has remained stable, domestic production has fallen sharply, leaving imports to supply most of the market.  Average…

ASTANA — The Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) has directed a cumulative $2 billion toward sustainable development projects and expanded its green investment portfolio to $1.08 billion in 2025, according to the bank’s Sustainability Report presented during its Annual Meeting and Business Forum on June 26 in Almaty. The report highlighted the bank’s growing role in…

ASTANA — Central Asia’s next logistics challenge is no longer building highways. It is ensuring that roads, railways, ports, warehouses, customs systems and digital platforms operate as a single, seamless network. That was the central message from a panel discussion on transport connectivity held during the Eurasian Development Bank’s (EDB) Annual Meeting on June 25,…

ASTANA — Kazakhstan has officially been recognized as free of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) across its livestock sector, becoming the only country in Central and Eastern Asia with the designation, a development expected to strengthen the country’s agricultural exports and international market access. Minister of Agriculture Aidarbek Saparov announced the achievement during a June 5 government…

ASTANA — Fans of Kazakh singer Dimash Qudaibergen from around the world are continuing to launch charitable, environmental and cultural initiatives inspired by the artist’s work and public outreach, according to DimashNews. These projects span several countries and range from fundraising campaigns to reforestation efforts and cultural exchange programs. In the Czech Republic, members of…

ASTANA — Kazakhstan will continue increasing oil production under the latest OPEC+ agreement, according to the Kazakh Energy Ministry. The announcement follows a virtual meeting of seven OPEC+ countries, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman on June 7, which agreed to gradually raise production as part of a coordinated effort to support…

ASTANA — Kazakhstan plans to commission 8.4 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2035 as part of its low-carbon development strategy, Kazakh Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov said during the Baku Energy Week on June 2, the ministry’s press service reported.  Speaking at a plenary session, Akkenzhenov said Kazakhstan is pursuing a dual-track energy strategy focused…

ASTANA — President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev reviewed progress on the development of Alatau City on June 2, describing the project as a “city of accelerated development” and outlining a broad agenda aimed at turning it into a major center for investment, innovation and logistics, according to Akorda press service.  Tokayev was briefed on ongoing construction, investment…