Articles by Manshuk Bekentayeva

ASTANA – The Nazarbayev Centre held an exhibition titled “Picturesque Spring” on March 5 showcasing the works of well-known female artists from Astana. The exhibition honoured International Women’s Day. “I am very pleased to open an exhibition of female art in anticipation of spring. I would like to congratulate all women with the spring holiday…

ASTANA – The Tungysh (Kazakh for “The First”) week of documentary films leading up to the celebration of the Day of the First President took place in Astana from Nov. 26 through Dec. 1. During the presidential film festival, eight documentaries about the life and work of President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev were shown. Each…

ASTANA – The International Centre of Educational Programmes opened at Turan College of Astana on Oct. 22. The new centre will train students at top international standards and aims to facilitate their entry into the global education space. The new centre will organise and train students who wish to obtain international certificates as well as…

ASTANA – The offspring recently born to Shetland ponies and European fallow deer in the Children’s Biological Centre of Semey are healthy and thriving. “After a long and cold winter, a Shetland pony and European fallow deer were born in the Biological Centre. The pony is beginning to eat on its own and repeat the…

Fifty children from low income families recently had the opportunity to attend a Kazakh, Russian, English and Spanish multilingual recreation and education camp developed by the public fund Center for Partnership at Sharbakty Village in the Lebyazhinsky area of the Pavlodar region. Adding multilingual educational programmes to existing summer camps helps the camps reach more…

A scientific and methodical council on the preservation of the historical and cultural heritage of the region was set up on June 16 in Kyzylorda, immediately calling for the designation of the region’s Korkyt-Ata Complex as UNESCO’s World Heritage Site. Famous poet, national writer of Kazakhstan, politician and Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan to UNESCO Olzhas…

The Tree of Life resort and recreation centre, a joint Kazakhstan-Czech project, has opened in Aktau. On June 13, Akim (Governor) of Mangistau region Alik Aidarbayev, Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Kazakhstan Bedzhikh Kopecká and President of the Kazakhstan Tourist Association Rosa Assanbayeva took part in the centre’s opening ceremony. On the same day,…

ASTANA – The capital of Kazakhstan will host the international circus festival, Echo of Asia, from July 1 to July 8. For the sixth year in a row, the circus festival will be part of Astana’s annual anniversary celebration and will gather the region’s best circus performers. The Festival will also help highlight Kazakhstan’s cultural…

ASTANA – International Children’s Day, a celebration in honour of children and their protection, was marked on June 1 in Kazakhstan. Falling on the first day of summer, this celebration has become one of the most exciting holidays for children in Kazakhstan. The holiday was adopted by the Women’s International Democratic Federation (WIDF) at a…

Field archaeologists have completed preliminary work in Eastern Kazakhstan that will allow them to more thoroughly examine the burial site and materials of a third and fourth century BC “Saka Princess.” The burial site of the high-ranking young woman was discovered during the reconstruction of Taskesken-Bakty Road in the Urdzhar area of East Kazakhstan. The…

For two weeks in June and July. Kazakhstan’s junior football players will have the opportunity to be trained by one of the best coaches in the world from the junior academy of the legendary Barcelona football club. From June 30 to July 15 in Astana, Executive Director of training camps for FCB in Spain and…

ASTANA – On June 4, the “Our Flag! Our Emblem! Our Anthem!” campaign to celebrate the Day of State Symbols of Kazakhstan took place across the country and celebrations, including simultaneous performances of the national anthem both across Kazakhstan and internationally, were held in honour of the holiday. The sixth national forum of patriots, “My…

ASTANA – On June 4, the “Our Flag! Our Emblem! Our Anthem!” campaign to celebrate the Day of State Symbols of Kazakhstan took place across the country and celebrations, including simultaneous performances of the national anthem both across Kazakhstan and internationally, were held in honour of the holiday. The sixth national forum of patriots, “My…

ASTANA – On May 22, the photo exhibition Moment of Happiness opened at the Khan Shatyr mall as part of the Zhuldyzay (“star” in Kazakh) Festival for Children with Disabilities. “Each of us has a place in our heart for children who need our attention and support. Their happy faces, emotions and feelings are in…

The opening of the Days of Culture of Kazakhstan in Vienna, Austria, one of the first European countries to recognise Kazakhstan’s independence, took place on May 20th. The two countries mark the 21st anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations this year. Presidents Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan and Heinz Fischer of Austria agreed that their countries would…

ASTANA – During the official visits of Kazakhstan’s Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov to Spain on May 13 and Portugal on May 15-16, discussions about preparations for the upcoming EXPO 2017, in addition to other topics, were on the agenda. During his visit to Spain, Foreign Minister Idrissov met with King Juan Carlos I, Senate President…

ASTANA – As part of the State Programme of Accelerated Industrial and Innovative Development of Kazakhstan for 2010-2014, JSC “National Agency for Technological Development” (NATD) has been working in partnership with Columbia University since 2011 to identify new promising areas of technological and innovation development and the formation of recommendations based on best international practices.…

ASTANA – President Nursultan Nazarbayev congratulated the citizens of Kazakhstan on the 68th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory in the Great Patriotic War (1941–1945) on May 9. He laid flowers on the Otan Korgaushylar (Fatherland Defenders’) monument in Astana and honoured the Kazakh soldiers who died in the war with a minute of silence.…

The three chicks born on May 3, organisers hope, will mark the resurgence of Kazakhstan’s golden eagles. The chicks are the first of eight that are planned to be hatched and set free as part of the Make Your Contribution: Save Nature project developed and implemented by the Institute of Zoology of Kazakhstan, the company…

The Fifth Charitable Ball, one of the brightest events in the country’s social calendar, was held in Almaty on May 4. This year’s ball was held in the Grand Ballroom of the Royal Tulip Hotel. Gediminas Taranda, the artistic director of the Imperial Russian Ballet co-hosted the ball with Kazakh actress Karlygash Mukhamedzhanova. Russian opera…

ASTANA – The first Tamgaly Tas International Tourist Festival was held from April 26 to April 28 in a mountain area near the Ili River in the Almaty region. The main aim of the festival was to promote the national identity of the Turkic peoples and preserve their cultural heritage while promoting sports, the protection…

ASTANA – Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are playing a constructive and important role in helping foster the development of civil society in Kazakhstan, human rights expert Anki Wetterhall told The Astana Times. Wetterhall is also the wife of the Swedish ambassador to Kazakhstan. How long have you been living in Kazakhstan? Just over a year. It…

ASTANA – Four high school students from Kazakhstan will fly to Phoenix, Arizona as finalists in an international science and engineering competition for teenagers. Senior high school students from Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Moldova and Belarus have qualified as finalists in the 64th Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) to be held on May…

ASTANA – On May 10-11, Almaty will host hundreds of top IT professionals and creatives from around the region for a 24-hour completion of creativity and innovation known as the 3rd International HackDay at International IT University. In Kazakhstan, Hackday was first held in April 2011 at International IT University, which is the main organizer…

ASTANA – The International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) is celebrating its 20th anniversary. The anniversary marks two decades of mixed success in restoring ecological life and prosperity to the sea and its surrounding regions after decades of catastrophic misuse during the Soviet era. The fund, set up by the leaders of Central…

ASTANA – The International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) is celebrating its 20th anniversary. The anniversary marks two decades of mixed success in restoring ecological life and prosperity to the sea and its surrounding regions after decades of catastrophic misuse during the Soviet era. The fund, set up by the leaders of Central…

ASTANA – With the relocation of the capital from Almaty to Astana back in 1997, ambassadors and diplomatic missions moved to the new political centre of the country. Over the years, the number of activities held by missions in Astana has increased with the pace of human migration to this city on the steppe. The…

ASTANA – The first full-length 3D animated film ever made in Kazakhstan premiered before the Nauryz holiday on March 21. The film, called “Er Tostik and Aydahar,” is based on the Kazakh national fairy tale called “Er Tostik.” The project was a cherished dream of veteran director, 64-year-old Zhaken Danenov. It took three years to…

ASTANA – Tattoos and body decorations have been traditions in many cultures for thousands of years. They demonstrated membership in groups, showed status, served as good luck charms, indicated religious beliefs or, as is common now, were just fashionable. In ancient times, tattoos often belonged to royal or privileged classes. In the more recent past,…

ASTANA – The best falconers from across the Kazakh steppe gathered in the Almaty region’s district of Nura Feb. 21-23 for the annual National Berkutchi (falconer in Kazakh) Championship Sonar 2013. The championship is organised by the Kyran Federation with the support of the regional governor’s office and the Kazakhstan Agency for Sports and Physical…

ASTANA – Maslenitsa (or Butter Week in Russian) is the most cheerful and brightest among Orthodox Christian holidays, symbolizing the end of winter and the expectation of the awakening of nature in springtime. Usually celebrated during the last week before the Great Easter Lent, this year Maslenitsa falls on March 11-17. This holiday is considered…

ASTANA – After its first year in operation, Astana’s new E-ambulance service is proving its worth. The service was introduced as part of the Smart Astana programme in December 2011. Since then, the ambulance service’s mortality rate has dropped to 98 people dying before reaching hospital in 2012 compared to 105 in 2011. Under the…

ASTANA – The rich culture of Kazakhstan has gone on display in one of Europe’s most ancient and fabled cities. A new exhibition called “Kazakhstan – the Heart of Eurasia” opened in the Charles University in Prague on Feb. 7. It will remain on display until March 17. The exhibition celebrates the 20th anniversary of…

On January 28, in New York at the Executive Board of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) session, the second issue of The Development Advocate magazine was presented. It included 12 winning entries of UNDP’s second annual storytelling competition in an easy-to-read newspaper-style. The Kazakhstan story on disabilities titled Kazakhstan: Champion for Disabled was among the…

ASTANA – The Kazakhstan National Ice Fishing Championship was held under the auspices of the Federation of Sport Fishing of the Republic of Kazakhstan from January 18 to January 20 on Lake Balkhash. The championship has already become a tradition for fans of winter fishing and every year brings together anglers and athletes to demonstrate…

ASTANA – As a result of the Unified National Health System implemented in 2010, important strides have been made in healthcare provision in Kazakhstan. Recently, the nation has seen its first successful bone marrow transplants. Kazakhstan’s second successful bone barrow transplant was conducted at the National Research Centre for Maternal and Child Health of the…

ASTANA – Along with the rest of the world observing the Gregorian calendar, the people in Kazakhstan are getting ready to celebrate New Year’s Eve, buying gifts and finding places to gather with friends and family. According to the Oriental calendar, popular among citizens of the country, 2013 will be the year of the dark…