Astana Opera House to stage Kazakh and world masterpieces in June
ASTANA – The Kazakh capital is turning into the world’s largest performance venue this summer. During the more than 90 days of EXPO 2017, the city will offer a rich cultural and entertaining programme featuring local and foreign artists. The Astana Opera House and Astana Ballet Theatre have unveiled the upcoming performance schedule. “Abai,” the…
Int’l political, business leaders discuss One Belt, One Road initiative at St. Petersburg Economic Forum
ASTANA – International representatives of political and business circles gathered at the June 1-3 St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). More than 100 events were devoted to the main topic – the search for a new balance in the global economy. At least 12,000 people from 130 countries participated. “Last year, Kazakhstan chaired the Eurasian…
Foreign and Kazakh professors discuss challenges of academic integrity
ASTANA – KAZGUU University’s (Kazakh Humanities and Law Institute) Higher School of Economics hosted the second international scientific conference May 19-20 titled “Academic Integrity and University Governance.” Representatives of the Kazakh Ministry of Education and Science, professors and researchers from universities and major academic centres in the United States, Great Britain, Belgium, the Netherlands, the…
18-year-old Kazakh genius defends master’s thesis
ASTANA – Eighteen-year-old Rakhat-Bi Abdysagin recently defended his master’s thesis at Kazakh National University of Arts (KazNUA), reported tengrinews.kz. Abdysagin became a student at the Kurmangazy Kazakh National Conservatory at 13, while simultaneously studying piano under maestro Konstantin Bogino at Accademia Musicale S. Cecilia di Bergamo in Italy. After graduating from both schools four years…
Kazakh beekeepers to export honey to China
ASTANA – Kazakhstan and China signed the protocol on inspection, quarantine and sanitary requirements for honey exported from Kazakhstan to China during President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s official visit to China and his participation in the May 14-15 Belt and Road forum for international cooperation in Beijing. Kazakh Vice Minister of Agriculture Gulmira Issayeva and Chinese Chairperson…
Cooperation and peaceful resolution is the key for the future, says anti-nuclear activist
ASTANA – Tore Naerland, president of Bike for Peace Norway (BFP), has been nominated for the Kazakhstan Peace Prize for a Nuclear Weapons Free World and Global Security, the nation’s equivalent of the Nobel Peace Prize. He has been fighting for peace, disarmament and democracy on the planet and promoting peace by organising biking and…
Huawei Academy opens in Almaty to support local ICT education
ASTANA – Huawei recently opened the first in Kazakhstan Huawei Authorised Information and Network Academy (HAINA) in Almaty based on the Kazakh-British Technical University (KBTU), according to the company’s press service. The HAINA project will be a platform to train specialists in information and communication technologies (ICT) and telecommunications spheres. The laboratory is equipped with…
Kazakh dancer instructs salsa classes, finds her rhythm in Toronto
ASTANA – Aktobe-born and raised, Gulsaya Tuleu has been teaching, choreographing and performing lively and exciting salsa for years at Baila Society (BASo) in dynamic and multicultural Toronto. One of the most graceful dance forms, salsa inspires millions of people worldwide with the flexibility of its movements and energetic music. “Throughout my childhood, I performed…
Astana couple creates business to foster child development
ASTANA – Married Astana couple Amir and Zulfiya Zhantassov have created the “Smart Monkey” kit to foster child development for children up to 10 years old. “My wife Zulfiya and I came up with this idea in the U.S. during our studies at university. Upon arrival in Kazakhstan, we decided to implement it. Our kits…
New Astana railway station set to open June 1
ASTANA – Astana is set to open a new railway station ahead of the EXPO 2017 international specialised exhibition, to be called Nurly Zhol. The facility will open June 1, Kazakhstan Temir Zholy press service reports. The project is divided into two stages ensuring the integration of the Astana railway junction and the construction of…
Modern micro district to be built for young families in Taraz
ASTANA – Young families and couples in Taraz will now be able to purchase an apartment in a new residential area with modern infrastructure. The Zhambyl region administration had a look at a master plan and micro district miniature. “The residential complex should appear at the entrance to the regional centre from the north, along…
Scientists, Academics Discuss President’s Aim of Alphabet Switch, Raising Cultural Awareness
ASTANA – Leading academic and cultural voices met in Astana to discuss the Kazakh President’s goal of shifting written Kazakh from the Cyrillic to the Latin alphabet within 10 years. President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev set a target for completing the transition to the Latin alphabet by 2025 in an April 12 article published in…
Caspi Bitum plant increases efficiency with innovative storage, transport method
ASTANA – Aktau bitumen plant has developed an innovative way of storing and transporting bitumen, kazinform.kz reports. “Viscous road bitumen is packaged in Big Bag disposable transport containers and plastic bags with a capacity of 1,000 and 40 kilogrammes respectively. New technology implies the packing of cold bitumen allowing not only to preserve the quality…
Astana improves services, enhances security to welcome EXPO 2017 visitors
ASTANA – In anticipation of the EXPO 2017 international specialised exhibition, the city administration is taking a holistic approach to preparing for the country’s main event in a decade. The capital’s municipal enterprises and businesses are completing preparatory works to provide a safe and positive experience for tourists and citizens during the informative and recreational…
U.S. filmmaker chronicles Kazakh eagle hunters in Western Mongolia
ASTANA – A stunning video named “Nomads of Mongolia” describing the life of Kazakh eagle hunters in Western Mongolia shot by U.S. filmmaker Brandon Li has been amazing YouTube and Vimeo viewers over the past few months. The former MTV producer and current global nomad took some time from his schedule to give an exclusive…
Social Health Insurance Fund CEO clarifies system for health contributions
ASTANA – The Kazakh Parliament is considering amendments to the law on compulsory social health insurance. If they are approved, contribution rates to the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) will be reduced to ease the burden on the economy and business, said SHIF chairperson Elena Bakhmutova. “In general, the proposal is to reduce the rate…
Turgay geoglyphs can help reveal nomadic secrets, says discoverer
ASTANA – “Perhaps there are no monuments of global significance on our land like the Egyptian pyramids or the Colosseum, but the role of nomads in world history is undeniable,” said Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev in June 2008. More than a year had passed since mysterious structures were discovered across Northern Kazakhstan in March 2007…
Kazakhstan’s agricultural sector needs more investments
ASTANA – The Kazakh economy was backed by the agricultural sector in 2016, however, the level of investment remains low, rising just 3.3 percent of the total investment volume, reported finprom.kz. “Despite a sharp increase in 2016, agriculture is still experiencing a deficit of investment support compared to other sectors of the economy. Over the…
Movie about Alexei Leonov, first man to walk in space, to premiere April 6
ASTANA – “Vremya Pervyh” (“The Time of the First Ones”), the first Russian movie about the heroic story of Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, will be released April 6 in 3D. The film will also be available in the Kazakh language. The picture tells the real story of Leonov’s spacewalk during the one-day Voskhod 2 mission.…
UN Commission praises development of women’s entrepreneurship in Kazakhstan
ASTANA – The March 13-24 61st session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) at the United Nations headquarters in New York praised approaches taken by Kazakhstan to increase employment and boost women’s entrepreneurship in rural areas, reported the press service of KazAgro National Management Holding. Deputy Chairperson of KazAgro Aigul Mukhamadiyeva spoke…
Stability and strong ethnic, religious relations key to unity, Kazakh supreme mufti says
ASTANA – Kazakhstan is undertaking major political steps to strengthen the country’s position in the world and become an ever-better model of peace and friendship. The deep religious commitment of tolerant, generous people can help maintain harmony and mutual understanding between all of Kazakhstan’s people and, indeed, all people, Chairman of the Spiritual Administration of…
Kazakh uranium production to decrease eight percent this year, say experts
ASTANA – Approximately 22,000 tonnes of uranium, representing an 8-percent decrease, will be extracted this year compared to a 25-percent increase in gold production, according to the research and knowledge management department of Samruk Kazyna Sovereign Wealth Fund, reported abctv.kz. “In 2016, nearly 24,000 tonnes of uranium were produced in Kazakhstan, 1.7 percent more compared…
Exhibition opens marking 25th anniversary of Kazakhstan’s accession to UN
ASTANA – The “Kazakhstan and the United Nations: Interaction for Peace” exhibition has opened in the Museum of the Library of the First President of Kazakhstan to mark the 25th anniversary of Kazakhstan’s accession to the UN and the beginning of the country’s activity as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council. The exhibition…
KAZGUU provides additional scholarships to gifted students
ASTANA – KAZGUU University (Kazakh Humanities and Law Institute) allocates 80 million tenge (US$251,440) every year for tuition fee concessions, educational grants and scholarships for gifted students who have demonstrated good academic results. “The KAZGUU Endowment Corporate Fund was created in 2016 to support talented students offering young people, including those from socially vulnerable families,…
Finland, Kazakhstan have great potential for cooperation in clean energy, envoy says
ASTANA – Over 25 years of diplomatic ties, Kazakhstan and Finland’s strong and peaceful relationship has grown more intense, Finnish Ambassador to Kazakhstan Ilkka Raisanen said in a March 7 interview with The Astana Times. “We have many exchanges at different levels based on good relations that our Presidents have. President Nursultan Nazarbayev has been…
