Articles by ASSEL SATUBALDINA

NUR-SULTAN – The Heads of Turkic Speaking States will gather virtually March 31 for an informal summit of the Turkic Council.  The Turkic Council, formally the Cooperation Council of Turkic-Speaking States, was founded Oct. 3, 2009 in Nakhchivan at the initiative of Kazakhstan’s First President Nursultan Nazarbayev. Its members are Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey and…

NUR-SULTAn – Dimming lights for one hour might not seem a difficult task, but when millions of people do it at one time, this becomes a huge gesture of support that we lend to our planet. With this idea in mind, the Kazakh capital city Nur-Sultan joined the Earth Hour movement on March 27 going…

NUR-SULTAN – The number of coronavirus cases has increased 12 percent over the past a week as a result of the easing of the restrictions has led to more cases, said Kazakhstan’s Vice Healthcare Minister and Chief Sanitary Doctor Yerlan Kiyasov at a press briefing on March 25.  The Capital city Nur-Sultan, Almaty, Atyrau and…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan’s fifth contingent of peacekeepers departed to Lebanon as part of the next rotation of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) mission, according to the Kazakh Defense Ministry’s press service.  One hundred and twenty officers will spend the next six months stationed at a UNIFIL base in South Lebanon on the border…

NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh Ministry of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources has launched its Taza Tabigat (Clean Nature) campaign aimed at planting trees across the country, reports the ministry’s press service. The measures will also include cleaning national forests and water reservoirs and improving the parks.  The project began in Turkestan in southern Kazakhstan and…

NUR-SULTAN – As Kazakhstan celebrated Nauryz on March 22, the celebration could not go without the traditional cooking of delicious food, an integral part of a centuries-old tradition to celebrate the holiday.  UN Resident Coordinator in Kazakhstan Michaela Friberg-Storey marked the holiday by preparing a Kazakh national dessert, which she had a chance to learn…

NUR-SULTAN – The Nazarbayev Center for the Development of Interfaith and Inter-Civilization Dialogue opened an exhibition titled “Islam and Humanity: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow” on March 17 to showcase the many faces of Islam. The exhibition is a collection of 45 photos from different religious institutions across the Muslim world. The exhibition, which is dedicated…

NUR-SULTAN  – Spirituality is what the modern world lacks, said Bulat Sarsenbayev, the Chair of Kazakhstan’s Nazarbayev Centre for Development of Interfaith and Intercivilization Dialogue,  in an interview with the Astana Times. Established in 2019 at the initiative of Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and with the support of Kazakhstan’s First President, the centre seeks to…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan’s Agency for Strategic Planning and Reforms Chair Kairat Kelimbetov and Minister of the National Economy Aset Irgaliyev spoke about the new state planning system and national priorities during a press briefing on March 17. Kazakhstan adopted the National Development Plan in March, which is based on ten national priorities.  The ten priorities…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan and Turkey have reaffirmed their commitment to a strategic partnership, as Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mukhtar Tileuberdi made his official visit to Turkey on March 16-18, reports the Kazakh Foreign Ministry’s press service.  During the visit, Tileuberdi met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay,…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed the amendments to the law on international agreements, reports the Akorda press service.  The amendments determine the terms and conditions for international agreements on Kazakhstan.  “The draft will ensure the inclusion of norms on the priority of ratified international treaties over the laws of Kazakhstan. It will also…

NUR-SULTAN – More than two million people in Kazakhstan joined the Campaign of Good Deeds initiated by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and held under the auspices of the 30th anniversary of Kazakhstan’s independence.  The initiative was voiced by President Tokayev in December 2020, as he closed the Year of the Volunteer in Kazakhstan noting the…

NUR-SULTAN – Masks, hand sanitisers, social distancing, quarantine – these words were not so widely used just a year ago, but since the coronavirus outbreak last year, nothing has been the same in the lives of millions of people. A year ago, on March 16, Kazakhstan declared a state of emergency, for the first time…

NUR-SULTAN – A Kazakh delegation headed by Prime Minister Askar Mamin made a working visit to Abu Dhabi reaffirming Kazakhstan’s interest in strengthening cooperation with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and witnessing the signing of agreements worth $2.2 billion, reports the Kazakh Prime Minister’s press service.  During his visit, Mamin met with Vice President and…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan’s Imanbek Zeikenov won the Best Remixed Recording award at the 63rd Grammy Awards which aired March 14, the first winner in the history of Kazakhstan.  Imanbek Zeikenov, known as Imanbek, won the award for his remix of Saint Jhn’s 2016 song “Roses.” He competed with RAC, Morgan Page, Louie Vega and Haywyre…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed a new law endorsing ten national priorities that will shape the country’s development in the coming years.  The ten priorities include fair social policy, an accessible and effective healthcare system, quality education, a just and effective state to protect the interests of citizens, a new model of government,…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh capital Nur-Sultan and Kazakhstan’s largest city Almaty re-entered the high-risk red zone. Of 899 new cases registered in Kazakhstan over the past day, 237 are in Almaty and 112 in Nur-Sultan. As of March 12, the number of Covid-19 cases in the country rose to 221,669. 2,837 people died from coronavirus.    Currently,…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh Minister of the National Economy Aset Irgaliyev reported on the country’s economic development over the past two months noting positive dynamics across the sectors, as the epidemiological situation shows signs of improvement, according to the Kazakh Prime Minister’s press service.  The real sector, excluding mining, demonstrated a 6.3 percent growth, while investments…

NUR-SULTAN – The government commission assigned to supervise the recovery of economic growth has adopted a package of additional measures to support businesses that suffered from the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic, reported the Kazakh Prime Minister’s press service. The meeting was chaired by Kazakh Prime Minister Askar Mamin.  The measures are meant to stimulate…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan has adopted a National Development Plan through 2025 that outlines the country’s long term priorities, reported the Kazakh National Economy Ministry press service. The document was developed by the Ministry and the Agency for Strategic Planning and Reforms at the instruction of Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. The plan, which supplements Kazakhstan’s Strategy…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan ranked fifth in terms of mobile data cost in the United Kingdom’s Internet Accessibility Index 2021 published by Broadband Choices service.  The price for 1 gigabyte of mobile data is estimated at $0.9 with mobile internet coverage reaching 100 percent of the country’s 18 million.  India, Israel, and Russia have the least…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh Minister of Energy Nurlan Nogayev participated in the 14th meeting of OPEC (Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) and non-OPEC ministers that took place March 4. Following the meeting, Kazakhstan and Russia were allowed to increase oil production to 20,000 barrels per day and 130,000 barrels per day, respectively, in April.  While production…

NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed a new law introducing changes and amendments to the country’s legislative documents on the Caspian Sea issue, reported the Akorda press service.  The document is meant to align the national legislation with the regulations of the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea signed by leaders…

NUR-SULTAN – Germany’s Lufthansa announced it would resume its regular flights to Kazakhstan in May. The flights will be resumed from the Kazakh capital Nur-Sultan and Almaty to Frankfurt. Frankfurt to Almaty flights will be operated on Mondays and Saturdays landing at Nur-Sultan’s  international airport, and a non stop direct flight on Thursdays. Lufthansa, whose…

NUR-SULTAN – The Foreign Investors’ Council held a working meeting on March 3 with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and the heads of oil and gas companies operating in Kazakhstan, reported the Akorda press service. The meeting sought ways to increase the investment attractiveness of the country’s oil and gas sector  The council’s meeting was attended by…