Articles by Saniya Sakenova

ASTANA – China’s East Hope Group (EHG) plans to establish a vertically integrated non-ferrous metals production facility in Kazakhstan, featuring an industrial park, a mining and processing plant, an electrolysis plant, and a power plant.  The total investment is expected to exceed $12 billion, as reported during a Feb. 17 meeting between Kazakh First Deputy…

ASTANA – A pre-trial investigation has been launched into the Feb. 17 collapse at the Zhomart mine in the Zhanaarka district of Kazakhstan’s Ulytau Region, which left seven people dead, Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev said at a Feb. 19 government meeting, reported the Prime Minister’s press service. A total of 402 people evacuated independently.…

ASTANA – President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev highlighted the high level of strategic partnership between Kazakhstan and Hungary during a Feb. 17 meeting with Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó, who arrived in Astana on an official visit, reported Akorda. Tokayev expressed satisfaction with the progress in implementing the agreements signed during his state…

ASTANA – The Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) recommends key reforms to enhance Kazakhstan’s carbon regulation system, including the paid allocation of carbon allowances, expanding emissions trading platforms, and creating a carbon fund in a report published on Feb. 17. “International experience demonstrates that emissions trading systems (ETS) in developed and industrially emerging countries operate…

ASTANA – President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed planned negotiations on Ukraine, emphasizing the importance of stability for Kazakhstan. He made the remarks during the City of Working Professions festival on Feb. 13 in Astana, Akorda reported. “We pursue the ideology of ‘unity in diversity,’” he said. “From the very beginning, we have advocated for ending…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s men’s hockey team defeated China 3-1 in the semi-finals of the 2025 Asian Winter Games in Harbin and will compete for the gold medal on Feb. 14, reported the National Olympic Committee. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan’s women’s team beat Hong Kong 6-3 in curling and will face South Korea in the semi-finals today. In…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s net international reserves exceeded $45 billion in January, increasing by 3.29% over the month and by 29.7% over the year, according to statistics from the National Bank (NBK), published on Feb. 11. Net international reserves represent the difference between gross reserves and the NBK’s foreign currency liabilities. Gross reserves, in turn, consist…

ASTANA – The Kazakh Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation is determining how to utilize 1.35 million euros (US$1.39 million) in funding from the French Development Agency (AFD) to preserve Lake Balkhash, Kazinform reported on Feb. 10. The corresponding trilateral agreement was signed during the One Water Summit in December 2024. AFD provides the grant…

ASTANA – Over the past three years, 101 foreign companies registered in Kazakhstan have paid 75 billion tenge (US$147.3 million) in taxes, the Kazakh Finance Ministry’s press service reported on Feb. 10. Huawei, Aliexpress, Google, Apple, Netflix, and other international firms are among the companies involved. Last year, they paid 35 billion tenge (US$68.7 million).…

ASTANA – Almaty’s Kairat football team confirmed the transfer of 16-year-old forward Dastan Satpayev to London’s Chelsea Football Club on Feb. 10. He will move to London in the summer of 2026 when he turns 18. Italian sports journalist Fabrizio Romano reported that the transfer fee, including bonuses, reached four million euros (US$4.1 million), a…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan improved its ranking in Transparency International’s 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), climbing five spots to 88th place among 180 countries. The country scored 40 points, marking a historic high due to comprehensive measures to combat corruption. The global average score was 43, while in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region (19…

ASTANA – Graduates of Coventry University’s branch in Astana, which opened this academic year, can now receive a British diploma without leaving Kazakhstan. Deputy Prime Minister Tamara Duissenova met with Coventry University Group Vice-Chancellor and CEO John Latham on Feb. 11 to discuss training highly qualified professionals to meet labor market demands. According to the…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan has expressed its intention to join the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI), as announced by Minister of Digital Development, Innovations, and Aerospace Industry Zhaslan Madiyev at the AI Action Summit in Paris on Feb. 10-11, reported the ministry’s press service. GPAI is an international initiative that promotes the responsible development of…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s men’s freestyle acrobatics team secured a historic gold medal on Feb. 11 at the 2025 Asian Winter Games in Harbin. Sherzod Khashirbayev and Roman Ivanov became the best in synchronized jumps, surpassing two strong Chinese teams, reported the National Olympic Committee (NOC). “For the first time in Kazakhstan’s history, freestyle acrobatics athletes…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan is set to toughen penalties for illegal archaeology and introduce stricter regulations in the field. The corresponding project has been developed and is currently under consideration in the Mazhilis, a lower house of Parliament, Finprom.kz reported on Feb. 5. Scientists and archaeologists have spoken about the need for a tougher approach to…

ASTANA – President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev instructed the government further to study the value-added tax (VAT) rate issue, stating that it should be differentiated. According to Akorda, speaking at a meeting with domestic business representatives on Feb. 7, Tokayev stressed that any changes must be based on a comprehensive analysis and a well-thought-out strategy. He emphasized…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan concluded more than 100 investment contracts totaling approximately three trillion tenge (US$5.8 billion) last year, First Deputy Prime Minister Roman Sklyar said during an investment forum on Feb. 7 in Astana, reported Kazinform. According to Sklyar, Kazakhstan ranks among the world’s top 50 leaders in foreign direct investment (FDI) and attracts over…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan welcomed 655,000 Chinese tourists in 2024, a 78% increase from the previous year, Nurtas Karipbayev, the chairman of the Tourism Industry Committee of the Kazakh Tourism and Sports Ministry, said at a Feb. 6 press conference in the Central Communications Service (CCS). During the official visit of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to China,…

ASTANA — The University Medical Center (UMC) Heart Center medical team successfully performed the 100th donor heart transplant in Kazakhstan on Feb. 4, according to the UMC’s press service. The donor, a 62-year-old man from the North Kazakhstan Region, was confirmed with brain death due to a stroke. His family agreed to donate his organs,…

ASTANA – Foreign travelers arriving in Kazakhstan will now receive a special card with a QR code linking to the SafeTravel.kz multilingual website, the Interior Ministry reported on Feb. 5. The initiative aims to improve tourist safety and convenience. The first QR-coded cards have already been given to foreign nationals at the international airport in…

ASTANA – Kazakh Deputy Foreign Minister Alibek Bakayev outlined Kazakhstan’s priorities as chair of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) during the first ECO High-Level Committee meeting on Feb. 3 in Tehran, reported the ministry’s press service. According to Bakayev, the key focus is on transport and logistics connectivity, trade, technological interaction, institutional development of the…

ASTANA — Under the Accessible Internet project, Kazakhstan will provide mobile internet access on all national and regional roads by 2027, Minister of Digital Development, Innovations and Aerospace Industry Zhaslan Madiyev said at a Feb. 4 government meeting chaired by Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov. According to the Prime Minister’s press service, Madiyev reported ongoing work…

ASTANA — Flight data from the Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) Embraer-190 crash near Aktau last December indicate a sonic boom at 05:13:31, followed by an autopilot and throttle disconnect alarm, according to a preliminary report by the Kazakh Ministry of Transport, published on Feb. 4. One second later, the aircraft lost its primary control systems. By…

ASTANA – Dimash Qudaibergen’s song “Smoke” climbed the United States (U.S.) music charts, reaching 32nd place on the iTunes Top 100 on Jan. 30, reported Dimashnews.com. The song also entered Amazon’s Top 10 in the Best Sellers in Songs category and claimed the first spot in Best Sellers in Pop. “Smoke,” released on April 26,…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan has created a tech ecosystem that is generating $1 billion and even $10 billion startups at a pace comparable to leading global ecosystems in the United States (U.S.) and China, said Yoram Wijngaarde, the founder and CEO of Dealroom.co, during the Digital Almaty 2025 forum held from Jan. 31 to Feb. 1.…