Articles by Jan Furst

ASTANA – Two Australian cyclists, Dan Rule, 26, a sports coach and sport developer from Creswick, Victoria, and Jess Mumford, 26, a science teacher from Murwillumbah, New South Wales, have embarked upon a type of journey that most people never will and that is a 23,000-kilometre bicycle trip across 23 countries, lasting over 15 months…

ASTANA – As Kazakhstan works to diversify its economy, the development of tourism has become a national priority. Chairman of the Tourism Industry Committee of the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies Marat Igali spoke about Kazakhstan’s efforts to ramp up tourism in an exclusive interview with The Astana Times. Which countries or regions should…

Ranked as one of the ‘50 most influential women in Romania’ by Forbes Romania magazine, Irina Socol is the President and CEO of SIVECO Romania, the leader of the Romanian IT market. She founded the company in 1992 and has led it to become one of the major European players in eLearning, eHealth, eAgriculture, eCustoms,…

ASTANA – Regulars and newcomers had a chance to test their salsa moves recently thanks to the expatriates organisation InterNations’ Salsa event at the RBG restaurant at the Park Inn Hotel. InterNations Astana ambassador Anara Zhabaginova recently told The Astana Times what InterNations stands for and why it is important to have such organisations in…

ASTANA – Belgium and Kazakhstan have been publicly matched a few times recently – at the Davis Cup world group match in February of this year, when Kazakhstan ousted Belgium in the first round only to be knocked out by Switzerland, and in the bidding for EXPO 2017 in 2012, when Astana won the honour…

ASTANA – The beginning of the month of May in Kazakhstan is, perhaps, some of the most anticipated period in the country as it brings together three celebrations, each being important and carrying special meaning in their own right. On May 1, Kazakhstan celebrates the Day of the Unity of the People. On May 7,…

ASTANA – High-level policymakers and market experts at the governor’s seminar, “Reducing Vulnerability: Learning From Past Crises,” during the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) 47th annual meeting in Astana’s Palace of Independence on May 3 addressed the importance of a fundamentally sound economy in a crisis. “Regardless of the level of development, a country risks being…

ASTANA – “Kazakhstan 2050: Toward a Modern Society for All,” a seminal 400-page book about the projected trajectory of development of Kazakhstan’s economy and society, was presented at the May 2-5 47th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank in Astana. Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Karim Massimov and a group…

ASTANA – More than 3,000 international finance ministers, central bank governors, business leaders, investors, journalists and civil society representatives are expected to gather in Astana May 2-5 for the 47th annual meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The meeting is being held under the heading, The Silk Road –…

ASTANA – A network of colleges featuring finely tuned specialisations, including tourism and hospitality, construction and housing, energy, engineering, design and information technology and communications is being developed with campuses under construction in the capital Astana and also in the country’s business heartland of Almaty. Under the banner World Class Colleges, the learning institutes are…

ASTANA – A seminar on automated human resource management systems in the public sector was held recently at the National Centre for Civil Service Personnel Management. The seminar was supported by the Agency for Civil Service Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the European Union-funded project “Civil Service Reform and Modernisation of the Government…

ASTANA – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) works in developing countries in Asia and the Pacific region to alleviate poverty and support sustainable growth. Country Director Matthew Westfall spoke with The Astana Times about what the ADB stands for and its role and objectives in Kazakhstan. “The ADB was founded in 1966, driven by a…

The prestigious rally race Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge took place in the United Arab Emirates Apr 3-10. Kazakhstan’s Astana Dakar racing teams took on the challenge by winning the fourth leg of the five-day race for the first time in club’s history and doing well overall. Three Kazakh teams participated in the Desert Challenge: Bauyrzhan…

ASTANA – Kazakh boxer Gennady Golovkin, also known as GGG, has joined Manny Pacquiao, Ruslan Provodnikov, Sergey Kovalev, Brandon Rios and others in being named one of today’s most entertaining boxers, according to the site sports.ru. The 32-year-old World Boxing Association and International Boxing Organisation champion from Karaganda, central Kazakhstan,is known for turning each bout…

ASTANA – The embassies of France, Canada, Switzerland, Belgium and Romania in collaboration with the Alliance Française in Kazakhstan organised a festival on March 29 at the Astana Mall to celebrate French culture and language. The festival included wine, cheese and pastry tastings and trivia contests sponsored by French companies. Belgian Ambassador Michel Peetermans noted…

ASTANA – Fifty-four representatives of national football associations and members of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) voted during the March 27 XXXVIII UEFA Congress in Astana to establish a UEFA Nations League tournament. A four-point resolution establishing the new tournament called, “National men’s A-team competitions 2018-2022,” was unanimously adopted. The tournament will be held…

ASTANA – Hungary and Kazakhstan are geographically distant from each other. Hungary is in Central Europe and Kazakhstan is in Central Asia, but they share common traits, traditions and customs bestowed upon them by their nomadic ancestors, which bodes very well for the future development of multifaceted ties between the two nations, Hungary’s ambassador in…

Seventeen-year-old Lyubov Andreyeva is young, promising and fast enough to earn a seat in Formula Russia, the equivalent of Formula 3, which starts May 10 in Kazan, Russia. She will be the first Kazakh driver to represent Kazakhstan in a Formula Russia race. Andreyeva raced karts since her childhood and won numerous championships in Kazakhstan.…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan has attracted more than $180 billion in foreign investment since independence in 1991, mostly in oil and gas. The world’s ninth largest country by territory holds slightly more than 3 percent of the world’s recoverable oil reserves. However, Kazakhstan is also moving beyond fossil fuels and towards alternative energy. For example, a…

ASTANA – The Netherlands is Kazakhstan’s largest foreign investor and the third largest trading partner in Europe. Yet, the country’s new ambassador in Astana thinks there’s much more that can be done to expand trade and investment ties further, and to bring the two countries closer together. “First, I want to double the number of…

ASTANA – The Kazakh national football team faced Lithuania in an exhibition game in Turkey on March 5 and tied the game after letting the Lithuanians score first in the first half. Earlier, the national under-21 team (U-21) beat Iceland 3:2 in qualifications for Euro 2015 in their game in Astana. New national team head…

ASTANA – The Feb. 7 to Feb. 23 Olympic Games in Sochi once again were watched by people from every corner of the Earth and demonstrated the discipline, determination and sportsmanship that bonds nations and continents. The Kazakh national Olympic team included approximately 50 athletes who competed against the best in the world. Spectators around…

ASTANA – Thousands of kilometers, eight time zones and tens of degrees Celsius on a thermometer separate Brazil and Kazakhstan, but the newly appointed ambassador of Brazil in Astana in a recent interview noted numerous similarities between the two countries and a good number of reasons to be optimistic about the future of relations in…

ASTANA – The new French ambassador in Kazakhstan says he has a clear vision for improving bilateral ties during his tenure in Astana: “Densify, intensify, diversify and another D-word, discover.” “Densify means we want to make our political dialogue more dense and meaningful; intensify means we want to intensify our economic and trade partnership; diversify…

ASTANA – Another Fryday networking event was put on by Connecting Professionals on Feb. 7 at Sadaf, a new restaurant at King Hotel. More and more Astana residents and foreign visitors have been attending Fryday networking events. Each function attracts over a hundred professionals from different walks of life. With Astana being Kazakhstan’s administrative centre,…

ASTANA – At the 18th Annual East Mediterranean International Tourism and Travel Exhibition (EMITT) on Jan. 30 to Feb. 2, Kazakhstan’s display, “Kazakhstan: The Land of Wonders,” was named “Most Authentic.” The Committee of Tourism of the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies of Kazakhstan, headed by Chairman Marat Igali, along with delegations from Astana,…

Acclaimed Kazakh films Shal (released in 2012) and Harmony Lessons (2013) received awards at the 32nd annual Fajr Film Festival in Tehran, which was held from Feb. 1 to Feb. 11. Yermek Tursunov’s Shal was honoured for its outstanding technical and artistic achievement. Yerbolat Toguzakov, who starred as the main character, personally presented the feature…

ASTANA – Kazakh professional boxer Gennady Golovkin retained his WBA and IBO middleweight titles and extended his winning streak to 29-0 with 26 knockouts by defeating Ghana’s Osumanu Adama (now 22 wins, 4 defeats) in seven rounds in Monaco on February 1. Adama became Golovkin’s 16th back-to-back KO. It was predicted that Adama would need…

ASTANA – In the first round of the Davis Cup, Kazakhstan upset Belgium 3-2 at Astana’s National Tennis Centre on Feb. 2 to advance to the quarterfinals which will also take place in Astana in April. Andrey Golubev, who has an ATP ranking of 87, clinched Kazakhstan’s victory by beating Belgium’s Ruben Bemelmans (161). Kazakhstan…

ASTANA – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) presented its annual Transition Report in Astana on Jan. 30. The report, entitled “2013 Transition Report: Stuck in Transition,” is the EBRD’s flagship publication and provides an annual update on the progress of reforms and economic developments across 30 countries from central Europe and Central…

Kazakhstan defeated Finland 5:3 to win the country’s fifth bronze medal in history in Bandy World Championships. This year’s championship took place from Jan. 26 through Feb. 2 in the Russian cities of Irkutsk and Shelekhov. Seventeen countries, including Kazakhstan, participated in the championship. Kazakhstan captured the bronze by winning three of six games. They…

ASTANA – Astana will host the World Junior Chess Olympiad in October 2014 that is expected to attract youth from more than 50 countries, according to the Kazakhstan Chess Federation. “Kazakhstan proved that it is willing to further develop chess,” President of the World Chess Federation (FIDE) Kirsan Ilyumzhinov told the media, as he explained…

Kazakhstan’s first nuclear medicine centre is to be constructed in Semey. “It was proposed to build such a radiological facility back in 2003, based on the existing oncology centre,” Bayan Atantayeva, deputy director of radiological services of Semey regional oncology centre, said. “Even then, the cost of such a grand project was estimated at 13.9…

ASTANA – The final stage of this year’s 35th annual Dakar Rally, a South American adventure beginning in Rosario, Argentina, finished on Jan. 18 in Valparaiso, Chile. Kazakhstan’s fastest car crew, headed by Aidyn Rakhimbayev, finished 17th overall; in the truck category, Artur Ardavichus, Alexey Nikizhev and Radim Kaplanek came in 14th. As usual, the…

ASTANA – Thousands of Astana residents flocked to the Yessil River in temperatures below freezing on Jan. 19 to commemorate the Russian Orthodox Church’s Epiphany Day by dipping into the freezing water. Epiphany Day celebrates the christening of Jesus Christ in the Jordan River by John the Baptist and the manifestation of the Christian god…

ASTANA – London Olympics 2012 gold medalist and Astana Pro Cycling Team manager Alexander Vinokourov during a Jan. 14 press conference set out an ambitious goal for the team for 2014—to win Tour de France. “Last year we worked as a team to win Giro d’Italia and it was quite difficult,” Vinokourov commented. “But our…

ASTANA – While more and more foreigners are moving to Kazakhstan, tales of Kazakh expatriates abroad are still rare. Astana native Raushan Makhmutova, who has been working abroad since 2006, is one of Kazakhstan’s relatively small number of global workers and travellers. There are dozens of pins on Makhmutova’s personal map of travels, marking places…

ASTANA – While some dislike the fact that Astana sees some of the coldest winters in the world, many others take advantage of the capital’s cold weather. One way locals spend quality cold weather leisure time is skating on the Yessil River and on the Rowing Canal. Every winter, thousands of locals flock to the…

Barys beat their rival, Ak Bars on their opponent’s home ice with a score of 2:1 after a very tense three periods. The team now only stands one point behind Ak Bars in the rankings. For the Astana based Barys team, every game against the Kazan, Russia based Ak Bars is a big event. The…

Kazakhstan’s national Universiade team finished in 15th place in the medals standings at the Dec. 11 – 21 Universiade in Trentino, Italy with two gold medals, two silver and one bronze. Kazakhstan’s hockey team also attracted attention by beating Canada and the United States in the early rounds and nearly beating Canada again in the…

ASTANA – The spirited Kazakh comedy “Aliens Have Nothing to Do With This” opened across the country on Dec. 5. Maxim Akbarov, one of the film’s stars, spoke to The Astana Times about the film and his plans for the future in an exclusive interview. The 28-year-old Akbarov is well known to Kazakh audiences from…

Kazakh professional boxer, Beibut Shumenov (14 wins, 1 loss, 0 draws, nine knockouts) returned to the ring in San Antonio, Texas, on Dec. 14 after a year and a half hiatus to successfully defend his WBA light heavyweight champion belt against Slovak Tamas Kovacs (23 wins, 1 loss, 0 draws, 14 knockouts). Shumenov knocked Kovacs…

ALMATY, Dec. 7 – The Astana Arlans remain undefeated in the World Series of Boxing (WSB) after dominating Mexico Guerreros, 4-1, in Almaty on Dec. 7. The Arlans previously bested Russian Boxing Team and the Azerbaijani Baku Fires. The Guerreros have been struggling all season long, losing both their previous series 0-5, and presented a…

The expression of shock on the face of American boxer Curtis Stevens (25-4, 18 KO) at being knocked down in the second round by Kazakhstan-based boxer Gennady Golovkin (28-0, 25 KO) demonstrated just how underrated Golovkin has been in the boxing world. But by the time the refs stopped their Nov. 2 fight at Madison…

VIENNA, Nov. 1 –  Karipbek Kuyukov, the famous artist and Honorary Ambassador of the ATOM Project brought this simple message with him on a recent visit to Austria: “If you want peace, prepare for peace, prepare for it with all your efforts, each day of your life, each hour of your day”. Such a message…

ASTANA – President Nursultan Nazarbayev recently tasked Almaty Akim (Mayor) Akhmetzhan Yessimov to continue developing Almaty’s infrastructure and underlined that tourism is to play a key role in the region’s development. “I have instructed (the akim) to extensively work on the development of tourism where skiing plays an important role, (utilizing the) potential of the…

ASTANA – Over six days and in 40-degree desert heat, two Astana Dakar Rally Team crews finished in the top 10 after the race in Morocco on Oct. 13-19. “It was a very good result for our team,” said Gabdulla Ashimov, co-pilot of the T1 HiLux Overdrive crew. “We made it to the top 10…

ALMATY –The 17th Amateur World Boxing Championship began in Almaty Oct. 14 at Baluan Sholak Palace of Culture and Sports with the record-breaking participation of 576 boxers from 116 countries. The event is also unique in that it is the first time the International Boxing Association’s (AIBA) new rule eliminating protective headgear is being implemented.…

ASTANA – In a turn of events rarely seen in any hockey league, Barys hockey club goalkeeper Vitaly Eremeyev scored a goal in the Oct. 19 3:2 Barys victory against the Sibir hockey club. It was a close, physical game for Barys Astana, one of the squads no team wants to face this season, but…

ASTANA – President Nursultan Nazarbayev said the country was “on the right track” in its process of transitioning from Russian to the Kazakh language during his address to top-level officials on Oct. 17. “You can’t expect an adult to learn a language overnight,” he said, stressing that ethnic Kazakhs who do not speak their own…

KAZAKHSTAN – Comments by World Trade Organisation (WTO) General Director Pascal Lamy may indicate that Kazakhstan’s long-standing bid to join the organisation could finally be accepted before the end of the year. Accession to the WTO has been a top priority for Kazakhstan’s foreign affairs since 1996, the time it began negotiating the accession with…

ASTANA – President Nursultan Nazarbayev recently tasked Almaty Akim (Mayor) Akhmetzhan Yessimov to continue developing Almaty’s infrastructure and underlined that tourism is to play a key role in the region’s development. “I have instructed (the akim) to extensively work on the development of tourism where skiing plays an important role, (utilizing the) potential of the…

KAZAKHSTAN – Comments by World Trade Organisation (WTO) General Director Pascal Lamy may indicate that Kazakhstan’s long-standing bid to join the organisation could finally be accepted before the end of the year. Accession to the WTO has been a top priority for Kazakhstan’s foreign affairs since 1996, the time it began negotiating the accession with…

ASTANA – At the end of the first year of the Kazakhstan 2050 state programme, President Nursultan Nazarbayev addressed the ministers and listened to their reports on developments in the country over the past nine months. The programme is expected to propel the country into the 30 most developed countries by 2050. During the expanded…

ASTANA – A team of researchers at the Department of Scientific Capacity at Nazarbayev University have been working to develop a new concept in interactive, unconventional advertising that they think could change the way advertising is perceived. “Approaching a poster, showcase or multimedia screen, we see a static image or video and it does not…

ASTANA – Continuing and implementing more studies of Kazakhstan’s national history was encouraged at the third Interdepartmental Working Group session held at Akorda on Sept. 25, chaired by State Secretary Marat Tazhin. It was underlined during the session that a group of scholars had been assembled to develop basic school books on Kazakhstan’s history, beginning…

ALMATY – Representatives of major domestic and international energy companies gathered in Almaty October 1-4 to discuss issues related to the development of Kazakhstan oil fields and shale deposits, resolving oil transportation tax disputes, environmental protection and other key issues related to Kazakhstan’s energy sector. The discussions came during the Kazakhstan International Oil and Gas…