Articles by Assel Satubaldina

NUR-SULTAN – No Kazakh citizens remain in Afghanistan, said the Kazakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday. “There are no citizens of Kazakhstan on the territory of Afghanistan now. All of them have already left the territory of the country, at least those that we know of. Diplomats are on duty and continue their work,…

NUR-SULTAN – President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev is on his official two-day visit to South Korea that began on Monday, Aug. 16. He met with the President of South Korea Moon Jae-in, reports the Akorda press service.  President Tokayev is the first foreign leader to visit South Korea since the pandemic began. The two leaders, who met…

NUR-SULTAN – Fitch Ratings affirmed Kazakhstan’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at BBB with a stable outlook on Friday, Aug. 13, reports the agency’s press service. “Kazakhstan’s ‘BBB’ IDRs reflect strong fiscal and external balance sheets that have been resilient to the coronavirus and oil price shocks, and financing flexibility underpinned by accumulated oil…

NUR-SULTAN – The results of phase 1 and phase 2 clinical trials of Kazakhstan’s QazVac vaccine have been published in Lancet’s EClinicalMedicine journal on Aug. 13.  QazVac, which has been administered in the country since April, is an inactivated vaccine injected at a 21 day interval. The vaccine was developed by researchers from the Kazakh…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan delivered its own QazVac vaccine to Kyrgyzstan on Wednesday as humanitarian aid and as part of a broader effort between the two countries in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, reports the Kazakh Foreign Ministry press service.  The batch of vaccines was handed over in Bishkek with the participation of Kyrgyzstan’s Minister of Health…

NUR-SULTAN – President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev checked in on the implementation of investment projects in the Akmola Region and the development prospects of the city of Kokshetau during his working trip to the region, reports the Akorda press service.  Akmola Region Governor Yermek Marzhikpaev delivered the report outlining main social and economic indicators of the region,…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev met with newly elected rural akims (mayors) in the Akmola Region on Tuesday as part of his working visit to the region, reports the Akorda press service.  On July 25, Kazakhstan had its first-ever election of rural akims in an effort to give rural residents a chance to elect…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan seeks to enhance its public administration system and replaces state programs with national projects, deemed to become more effective and concise.  The idea of national projects is envisioned in the country’s new National Development Plan until 2025.  While at this point it seems difficult to see the difference between state programs and…

NUR-SULTAN – 11 million people, or 80 percent of the eligible population, should pass a full course of vaccinations to develop herd immunity in Kazakhstan, said Kazakhstan’s Vice Healthcare Minister Azhar Giniyat at a July 23 press conference. “Because of the mutation of the virus, only by vaccinating 80 percent of the people can collective…

NUR-SULTAN – Lowest voter turnout surpassed 65 percent in the rural elections that ended on Sunday, according to the regional central election commissions. The elections were held in the country’s 14 regions at 1,847 polling stations. They  had 2,297 candidates, including 1,419, or 61.8 percent, self-nominated individuals. Only 458 candidates were women.  The highest voter…

NUR-SULTAN – Almost one month is left until a new academic year begins with nearly 7,500 schools welcoming close to 3.5 million pupils. After nearly a year of classes held online, Kazakhstan prepares to bring pupils back to classrooms with strict sanitary regulations in place.  Last year has seen thousands of kids studying from home,…

NUR-SULTAN – A year and a half into the pandemic, Kazakhstan has so far resumed air travel with 16 countries, reports the Kazakh Ministry of Industry and Infrastructure Development.  Regular international flights are operated between 16 countries on 44 routes with a frequency of 184 flights per week.  The most frequent flights are to Turkey…

NUR-SULTAN – “A new and unfamiliar experience that turned into an exciting and wonderful time.” That’s how Muzhgan Sadat from Bamyan province in Afghanistan recalled her study experience in Kazakhstan. She was in the first group of 30 women to study in Kazakhstan as part of the European Union-funded scholarship program that launched its third…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan marked the Qurban Ait (Eid al-Adha) holiday on July 20 that comes as the countries around the world, including Kazakhstan, tighten COVID-19 restrictions and maintain the ban on gatherings.  The holiday, which means the feast of sacrifice, is mostly associated with sacrificing an animal, as well as large family gatherings and communal…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan will increase oil production up to 1.491 million barrels per day from August, steadily adding 16,000 barrels each month, announced the Kazakh Ministry of Energy following the July 18 meeting of OPEC ministers.  Kazakh Energy Minister Nurlan Nogaev participated in the meeting, which was initially supposed to take place at the beginning…

NUR-SULTAN – The heads of the foreign ministries of Central Asia and the United States gathered in Tashkent on July 15 for the regular C5+1 meeting, reports the Kazakh Foreign Ministry press service.  The meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Mukhtar Tileuberdi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan’s trade turnover with the Central Asian countries amounted to US$4.6 billion in 2020, said Kazakh Minister of Trade and Integration Bakhyt Sultanov at a July 13 press briefing.  Kazakhstan’s largest trade partner in the region is Uzbekistan. In 2020, Kazakhstan’s exports made nearly $2.1 billion, including wheat, oil, and metal products. Kazakhstan’s…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan has fulfilled its oil production quota under the OPEC+ (Organization for the Petroleum Exporting Countries) agreement producing 1.465 million barrels per day in June against the planned 1.469 million barrels, reports the Kazakh Energy Ministry.  “According to preliminary data, the volume of oil and condensate production in Kazakhstan in June amounted to…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan will deliver the Pfizer vaccine to ensure Kazakh citizens have a wider choice of vaccines against COVID-19, said Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev at the July 10 expanded government meeting. There have been four vaccines against COVID-19 available for the country’s citizens – Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine, the country’s own QazVac vaccine, China’s…

NUR-SULTAN – The Astana Hub, Kazakhstan’s international technopark of IT startups, presented its new digital platform on July 8, focused on automating all processes from submitting applications and participating in Astana Hub programs to filling out online reporting for residents receiving tax and visa preferences, said Astana Hub Director Magzhan Madiyev during the live-streamed presentation. …

NUR-SULTAN – President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev outlined the outcomes of the first half of 2021 and set the tasks for the months ahead at the July 10 expanded government meeting, reports the Akorda press service.  Prime Minister Askar Mamin, Head of the Presidential Administration Yerlan Koshanov, ministers as well as governors and mayors attended the meeting…

NUR-SULTAN – United Nations General Assembly Chairman Volkan Bozkir visited the Kazakh capital Nur-Sultan as part of his Central Asian tour. Bozkir, who was elected President of the 75th session of the UN General Assembly on June 17, 2020, met with Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mukhtar Tileuberdi…

NUR-SULTAN – The epidemiological situation has been worsening in Kazakhstan and with the Delta variant detected in the country, concerns are growing. As of July 8, only two regions – the East Kazakhstan and Turkistan regions – remain in the green zone, according to the matrix of the epidemiological situation updated daily by the Kazakh…

NUR-SULTAN – Svevind Energy, a German investor and project developer, plans to install wind and solar farms with a total capacity of 45 gigawatts (GW) in steppe areas in western and central Kazakhstan to feed electrolyzers to produce up to three million tons of green hydrogen every year, reports the company’s press service.  The plans…

NUR-SULTAN – As the Kazakh capital Nur-Sultan celebrates its 23 year anniversary, several monuments were opened in the city to commemorate the date, reports the Akorda press service.  President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev opened the monument dedicated to Alash movement leaders on the eve of Capital’s Day. The monument is located on the Kalamgeler Alley at the…