Articles by Zhanna Shayakhmetova

Qara Film Festival To Be Held Online In Kazakhstan Showcasing International Documentaries

NUR-SULTAN – The Qara Film Festival will be held online Aug. 6-9 in Kazakhstan. A new documentary film festival will feature international documentaries dedicated to the current issues.  “The characters of the films invite the audience to feel, think, and seek the truth. To take a refreshing new look at taboo issues. To help people…

Seven Pillars Law Firm Ready to Support Space Startups and Other Businesses in Kazakhstan

NUR-SULTAN – Seven Pillars Law, one of Central Asia’s most innovative law firms, has recently established a space office with the mission to assist clients looking to access opportunities, both commercial and scientific, associated with space. The Astana Times spoke with Helen Tung, the head of the Space division of Seven Pillars Law in the…

Kazakh Musician Performs Dauletkerey’s Composition With Lake Kobeytuz As Backdrop (Video)

NUR-SULTAN – The 23-year musician Marzhan Kapsamat surprised her followers with her recent music video on the pink-coloured Lake Kobeytuz. A well-known Kazakhstan social media sensation, this lake attracts those who take inspiring selfies and travel images. But Kapsamat’s solo performance of the famous Kazakh composer Dauletkerey Shigaiuly’s kyui (musical composition) “Korugly” became one of…

Kazakhstan Prepares For Elections With 94 Nominees For the Senate Already Registered

NUR-SULTAN – Ninety-four people were registered for the deputy elections to the Kazakh Senate (the upper house of the Parliament), which will be held Aug.12, reported chairman of the Central Election Commission Berik Imashev at the July 13 meeting. This election will decide the electoral fate of 17 current Senate deputies whose term expires in…

Schools and Universities in Kazakhstan Prepare Switch to Online Learning For Fall Semester

NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh Ministry of Education and Science proposed to continue online learning with the start of the new school season, reported PrimeMinister.kz. Colleges and universities will also continue remote learning.   The educational institution switched to online learning in mid-March when a state of emergency as a response to the pandemic outbreak was declared…

AIFC Continues Work Through Lockdown, Simplifies Access to Financing For Companies

NUR-SULTAN – The Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) plans to develop several legislative initiatives including green financing instruments, venture financing, and providing medium-sized companies with the opportunity to raise capital on the AIFC exchange in the segment of the regional stock market, reported Acting General Director of the AIFC Financial Services Authority Mukhtar Bubeyev in…

Kazakh President Honors Frontline Medical Workers Posthumously with State Awards

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed a decree to posthumously confer state awards to Oleg Isayev, the head of the anesthesiology and resuscitation department of Kokshetau hospital in the Akmola region and Kalikhan Kozbagarov, the head doctor of Aktobe infectious disease hospital on July 13.    Isayev and Kozbagarov were awarded posthumously the Hero of…

Kazakh Ministry of Healthcare Continues Efforts to Fight Pandemic, Confirms Close Cooperation with UN and WHO

NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh Ministry of Healthcare is continuing its tireless work to prevent and respond to the pandemic outbreak, said Minister of Healthcare Alexey Tsoy at the July 9 online meeting with United Nations (UN) Resident Coordinator for Kazakhstan Norimasa Shimomura and World Health Organization (WHO) Country Office Representative in Kazakhstan Caroline Clarinval, according…

Astana Opera House Shares Results Of Seventh Theater Season, Success of Online Projects During Lockdown

NUR-SULTAN – The Astana Opera House hosted 185 events in its seventh theater season, according to the theater’s press service report for early July. It includes three premieres – Giuseppe Verdi’s opera “Don Carlos,” Léo Delibes’ ballet “Coppélia” and “Beethoven – Immortal – Love” a ballet set to the music of Beethoven, Bach, Mozart, Haydn,…

Kazakhstan Celebrates National Dombra Day With Music and Social Distancing

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev congratulated Kazakhstan with National Dombra Day, which is celebrated on the first Sunday of July, according to the Akorda press service.  The Dombra is a musical two-stringed instrument, which occupies a special place in Kazakhs’ hearts.  President Tokayev noted that this day represents the nation’s course towards spiritual modernization…

Kazakh President Praises Heroic Actions of Frontline Workers, Reminds Public of COVID-19 Threat

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev expressed gratitude to doctors, nurses and ambulance workers for their heroic actions at the June 23 Biz Birgemiz (We Are Together) online forum dedicated to people who work in the fields of education, healthcare, social protection, and those who have contributed to the fight against the pandemic. On this day, frontline…

Nur-Sultan Residents Share Their Passion for Dachas, Escaping the City

Spring and summer are the most anticipated period for city residents not only because of the start of the vacation season but because this period is the busiest time for those who have their own dachas, or country houses outside the city. Many families who have houses in the city suburbs, prefer to grow their…

Debut of Kazakh Warrior-Queen Epic “Tomiris” in US Set For September

The historic film “Tomiris” directed by Akan Satayev will be released Sept. 29 in North American movie theaters after Arclight Films sold the U.S. distribution rights to the Well Go USA company, reported the Kazakhfilm press service.  The film “Tomiris” tells the story of the life of legendary queen Tomiris. As a great ruler and…

Pop Star Dimash Kudaibergen to Release New Album With Kazakh Songs

Popular Kazakh singer Dimash Kudaibergen has started working on his first album sung in the Kazakh language.  Kudaibergen released his self-titled debut mini-album featuring four Kazakh songs  in 2016. His first solo album was titled “iD” and it reached triple platinum an hour after the start of sales in 2019. An album becomes platinum when…

Almaty Authorities Approve More Relief Measures For Small Businesses

Almaty plans to create more than 30,000 jobs through state and regional programs. These include the Business Roadmap 2025 plan, the Enbek (Labor) employment and mass entrepreneurship program, the Economics of Simple Things group and Almaty Business 2025 program. Overall, 40 billion tenge (US$100 million) will be allocated for the implementation of all these programs.  …

Kazakhs Pivot to Indoor Sports, Virtual Events as They Adjust to Lockdown Lifestyle

People have started practicing more physical activities as well as engaging in online arts during lockdown, said Minister of Culture and Sports Aktoty Raimkulova at the June 6 press conference in Nur-Sultan. People’s participation in sporting activities and healthy lifestyle promotion are priority tasks for the ministry. To achieve this, a comprehensive plan to promote…

Kazakh Minister of Healthcare Worried People Not Following Lockdown Measures

Easing restrictions does not mean letting people return to their normal lives, people should “learn to live while in a pandemic, in lockdown, said Kazakh Minister of Healthcare Yelzhan Birtanov during the June 4 online briefing. Earlier this day, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev took to Twitter to call for people to observe lockdown measures including…

Survey Reveals Up and Coming Top Growing Jobs Within Kazakhstan

Companies began to gradually resume operations in Kazakhstan after the easing of the state of emergency on June 1st. As business activities begin returning to normal, FinReview information and analytical center has dedicated its top analysts to study the world market, and cross-analyze it with popular job search portals in Kazakhstan to identify professions that…

Kazakhstan’s Leading Cardiac Surgery Hospital Keeps Operating to Save Lives

Kazakhstan is one of the few countries where transplant surgery is being performed during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Yuriy Pya, CEO of Nur-Sultan based National Scientific Cardiac Surgery Center.   The Center has continued providing emergency and urgent care to patients with heart diseases including newborns, reported its press service. Last May, two transplant surgeries…

Kazakhstan Joins United Nations Development Programme on Preserving Biodiversity

Kazakhstan will join the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Mapping Nature for People and Planet project along with Colombia, Costa Rica, Peru, and Uganda, the UNDP reported in Kazakhstan. The unique pilot project will transform the way the local governments use spatial data to tackle conservation and sustainable development.    The UNDP selected the pilot countries…

Baikonur Cosmodrome Continues Space Operations Despite Lockdown

June 2 marks the 65th anniversary of the Baikonur Cosmodrome, the world’s first and largest space launch facility. Baikonur was always a source of pride for all citizens but Kazakh people had a special attachment to the facility and their own feelings watching the first man be launched into space out of Kazakhstan.  Baikonur is…

President Tokayev Accepts Invite to Rescheduled Moscow’s Victory Day Parade

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev will take part as an honored guest at the 2020 Moscow Victory Day Parade dedicated to the 75th Anniversary of the allies’ defeat of Nazi Germany. This was announced during Tokayev’s telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 26. He is one of the first world leaders to accept…

Draft Decree on Award for Fight Against COVID-19 is Available for Public Comment

A draft presidential decree on awarding medals to exceptional citizens who participated in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic has been submitted for public discussion on July 1 on the Open NPA website, which is intended for publishing draft projects and conducting public discussion on government policy, according to the Ministry of Information and Social…

Atameken Business Channel Opens Studio in Kyrgyzstan

Kazakhstan’s Atameken Business Channel began broadcasting in Kyrgyzstan on May 18 according to the company’s press service release. The TV channel is available in all regions for Aknet cable operator users. Its main mission is to create a platform for the exchange of information between the business communities of the two neighboring countries. The Atameken…

Semei Region Prepares to Celebrate 175th Anniversary of Abai

The final preparations are underway in the East Kazakhstan region of Semei ahead of the celebration of the 175th anniversary of Abai Aug.10.   The Kazakh poet, writer, philosopher, composer and translator was born in the Abai district near Semei. Abai is considered the founder of Kazakh literature. Abai’s philosophy has since become an integral part…