President Tokayev Takes Decisive Steps Ahead of Constitutional Reform, Serious Changes Ahead For Kazakhstan, Says State Secretary Karin
NUR-SULTAN – Last week a number of political events took place that paved the way for the implementation of major political reforms that were proposed by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev during his address to the nation on March 16. The week started off with President Tokayev’s announcement of his decision to resign early from the position…
MEP Says Kazakh President’s Reforms Important Step Towards Building Democracy
NUR-SULTAN – President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s reforms are “a serious step towards democracy” said Andris Ameriks, First Vice-Chair of the European Parliament (EP) Delegation for Cooperation with Central Asia and Mongolia and Vice-Chair of the EP Committee on Transport and Tourism, during his April 12 visit to Nur-Sultan as head of the EP delegation. According to…
US Ready to Partner With Kazakh Government on Implementation of Political Reforms, Senior Diplomat Says on Visit to Kazakhstan
NUR-SULTAN – The United States supports President Tokayev’s political reforms agenda, said Uzra Zeya, Under-Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights, at the press meeting at the Kazakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs on April 11. During her visit to Kazakhstan, the sides discussed a wide range of issues, including the aftermath of the January…
Kazakh Folklore Otyrar Sazy Orchestra Plans to Expand Foreign Repertoire (Video)
NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan’s Academic Folklore-Ethnographic Otyrar Sazy orchestra will expand its foreign repertoire by adding the popular works of famous musicians on Kazakh folk instruments, said Dinara Tlendiyeva, the orchestra’s artistic director and chief conductor during her meeting with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on April 1. Tlendiyeva, daughter of prominent Kazakh composer and conductor Nurgisa Tlendiyev,…
Czech Choreographer Jiri Kylian’s Contemporary Ballet Masterpiece ‘Falling Angels’ Premiers at Astana Ballet Theater
NUR-SULTAN – Eight ballerinas took the stage of Astana Ballet Theater on April 1 to perform in the Kazakh premiere of the “Falling Angels” – a choreographic miniature, one of the most famous works of Czech choreographer-philosopher Jiri Kylian. The ballet, accompanied by Steve Reich’s drum composition, portrays eight ballerinas, and eight different women. Kylian…
Stockholm +50 National Dialogue to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals Launched in Kyzylorda
NUR-SULTAN – The Stockholm +50 National dialogue, which is aimed at engaging communities in discussions on the environmental aspects of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), was launched in Kyzylorda on March 29 with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), announced UNDP office in Kazakhstan. Representatives of local governments, non-governmental organizations, youth…
Kazakhstan’s Qazaqstan Halqyna Fund Helps Kazakh Children With Rare Disease
NUR-SULTAN – The newly established Qazaqstan Halqyna (For the People of Kazakhstan) social fund financed the purchase of expensive medicine that will treat four Kazakh children with spinal muscular atrophy, a rare genetic disease, as well as train local specialists in that area, reports Inbusiness.kz on March 29. The name of the medicine is Zolgensma,…
Team of Young Kazakh, Kyrgyz, and Uzbek Women Launch Nanosatellites as Part of UniSat Program to Encourage Girls in Science
NUR-SULTAN – More than 150 girls and young women from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan created and launched three nanosatellites into the stratosphere for air pollution analysis as part of the UniSat program, a joint project between UNICEF and the Al-Farabi Kazakh National University on March 27 in Almaty, reported the UNICEF Kazakhstan press center. The…
Political Reforms Come First, Say Foreign Experts Discussing President Tokayev’s Address
NUR-SULTAN – Foreign experts discussed the importance of political reforms that act as a catalyst for the overall change in society and democratization, following President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s state of the nation address, during a round table held at the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies (KazISS) in Nur-Sultan on March 24. Yerkin Tukumov, KazISS Director, who…
Kazakh Analysts Say President Tokayev’s Address Went Beyond Expectations
NUR-SULTAN – President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s sweeping reforms announced in his state-of-the-nation address went beyond expectations and will strengthen the political system’s agility and responsiveness to the people’s demands, Kazakh experts noted during a roundtable on March 17. Among the key proposals attracting most attention were the transition to the mixed electoral model, the establishment of…
Threshold For Party Registration Should Be Reduced Fourfold, Kazakh President Tokayev Says
NUR-SULTAN – President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in his annual state of thе nation address on March 16 focused on the need to create “a favorable environment for the institutional and organizational development of parties” that will ensure clean and free political competition. The main changes concern the simplification of party registration procedures. The new proposition reduces…
President Tokayev Calls For Moving from ‘Super-Presidential’ Model to ‘Presidential Republic With a Strong Parliament’ in Address to the Nation
NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev delivered a state of the nation address on March 16 at the joint session of the Kazakh Parliament. The focus of President Tokayev’s message was the need to transform the distribution of power from the office of the Presidency to a strong Parliament through enhancing the power and responsibilities…
Kazakhstan Sends First Humanitarian Aid Plane to Ukraine Through Poland
NUR-SULTAN – The first plane with humanitarian aid for Ukrainians departed from Almaty airport on March 14, reported the Kazakh Ministry of Healthcare. Humanitarian aid consists of the medical supplies that Ukraine needs most. The total weight of the humanitarian aid is 28.2 tons, which includes 17 kinds of medicines: antibiotics, anti-inflammatory, anti-cough and anti-hypertensive…
Kazakhstan’s Commissioner For Human Rights Explains How Punishment For Riots Was Mitigated Where Appropriate
NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Elvira Azimova and representatives of the public commissions on human rights revealed examples of cases where the penalty for participation in the January unrest was mitigated during the March 14 plenary session of the Majilis, a lower house of the Kazakh Parliament. Azimova said that the commission was…
Thirty Years on, Kazakhstan Remains Committed to Advancing UN Principles and Cooperation
NUR-SULTAN – Three decades ago, Kazakhstan became a full-fledged member of the United Nations (UN), opening a new chapter of building peace, prosperity, and human rights in the region. Kazakhstan will continue its cooperation with the UN in tackling global challenges, said experts at the roundtable marking the 30th anniversary on Mar. 2 in Nur-Sultan.…
Nation Celebrates 105th Anniversary of Prominent Kazakh Actress Khadisha Bukeyeva
NUR-SULTAN – Refined, elegant, possessor of an excellent voice, a star of theater and film, Khadisha Bukeyeva, would have turned 105 this year. The prominent Kazakh actress was born in 1917 in the Kaztalovka village in Western Kazakhstan. She was only 15 when she moved to Almaty in 1932 to prepare for medical school. However,…
The Man Who Led His Nation to Enlightenment: Kazakhstan Marks 150th Anniversary of Prominent Scholar Akhmet Baitursynov
NUR-SULTAN – From a teaching career to becoming the founder of the first Kazakh alphabet and establishing the first national newspaper, Akhmet Baitursynov left a significant mark in the history of Kazakh literacy and is rightly called Ult Ustazy (Teacher of the Nation). This year Kazakhstan will celebrate Baitursynov’s 150th anniversary which was included in…
Two Major Kazakh National Companies to Undergo IPO This Year
NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan’s national airline Air Astana and the KazMunayGas (KMG) oil and gas company, whose major shareholder is the Samruk Kazyna Sovereign Wealth Fund, will go public this year, said Yernar Zhanadil, Samruk Kazyna Managing Director for Privatization and Development, in an interview with the Deputy Chair of Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) – Andrey…
Hometown Heroes: Stories of Almaty Residents Who Saved People During January Riots
NUR-SULTAN – Whether it is a single act of sheltering or someone risking their life to rescue beleaguered soldiers, such selfless acts of people made a huge difference in the lives of those saved during the tragic events of January in Almaty. Aleksandr Tsoi, a blogger and Almaty resident shared several stories on Facebook of…
Kazakh Poet Abai’s Song Played as Part of Dennis Vasilyev’s Dance Score at Winter Olympics in Beijing
NUR-SULTAN – When Latvian figure skater Dennis Vasilyev took to the ice for his short program at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, the viewers heard the lyrical melody of “Aittym Salem, Kalamkas” (Greetings to you, Kalamkas) – a famous love song by the great Kazakh poet Abai Kunanbayev. Even though Kazakhstan and Latvia are far from…
Businesses Receive Compensation and Restoration Advances in Almaty a Month after Tragic Events (Video)
NUR-SULTAN – The regional commission on compensation to small and medium-sized enterprises affected by the tragic events of January has paid out 370 million tenge (US$854,000) to 221 business owners, reported the press service of the Almaty akimat (city administration). January’s tragic events followed by mass looting in Almaty have caused more that 87 billion…
First Training Days of Kazakh Olympic Team at Beijing Winter Olympic Villages Go According to Plan
NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh teams of freestyle mogul, speed skating and short track speed skating have settled into the Olympic villages in Beijing and Zhangjiakou and started their first training sessions, reported the press service of the National Olympic Committee. On the first day upon their arrival the national team met with Thomas Bach, International…
Law Does Not Violate Human Rights in Conditions of Detention, Says Kazakhstan’s Commissioner for Human Rights
NUR-SULTAN – All matters of human rights violation of detainees: ill-treatment, absence of lawyers, and psychological pressure will be thoroughly examined and treated accordingly, said Kazakhstan’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Elvira Azimova in her appeal to Kazakh citizens on Jan. 27. From Jan. 13 to 24, regional groups of the National Preventive Mechanism for…
Open Door Investment Policy Remains Consistent, Says Kazakh President
NUR-SULTAN – “Kazakhstan remains consistently open to multifaceted cooperation with the international community,” said President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Jan. 24 on his Twitter. “We will continue to strengthen close ties with partners to benefit our country and our people. Our investment policy of open doors also remains consistent,” he added. In the aftermath of the…
Samruk Kazyna Sovereign Wealth Fund Undergoes Corporate Restructuring and Reforms
NUR-SULTAN – Chairman of the Board of Samruk Kazyna Almassadam Satkaliyev and Minister of National Economy Alibek Kuantyrov proposed several reforms, including the privatization of the assets of the fund, transparency of procurement procedure, and administrative changes during the meeting with Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov on Jan. 22, reported the Prime Minister’s Office. Later, on…
