Thirteen Kazakh banks to launch mobile phone payments by end of 2019
NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh National Bank in cooperation with 13 banks is developing instant payments to boost the country’s e-commerce industry. By the end of the year, the banks will be connected to a mobile phone payment system. “The National Bank has introduced a project that allows using a mobile phone as a means of…
“Muzbalak” to screen at Zlin Film Festival in Czech Republic
NUR-SULTAN – “Muzbalak,” a film by Kazakh artist-animators Turdybek Maidan and Tlek Toleugazy, will participate in the out-of-competition programme at the 59th Panorama International Film Festival for Children and Youth in Zlin, the Czech Republic. The event will run from May 24-June 1. “The time has come when Kazakh animation dynamically makes its way into…
Kazakh government launches system allowing citizens to provide certain documents online
NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh government recently launched a system which allows citizens to provide employers and government agencies documents via an online system, rather than the citizens having to collect and deliver those documents in person, the Ministry of Labour and Social Security Digital Office reported May 3. “Within the framework of already existing mechanisms,…
Yerevan hosts Qazaq Kuresi Championship, next competition scheduled in Poland
NUR-SULTAN – The first Armenian Qazaq Kuresi Championship, organised with the support of the Qazaq Kuresi International Federation, was held recently in Yerevan. The second European Qazaq Kuresi Championship will be held June 16 in Wrocław. Qazaq Kuresi, a traditional Kazakh style wrestling, is included in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO)…
Kazakh government kicks off campaign to encourage participation in June 9 presidential election
NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh government has launched a campaign to raise awareness about the June 9 presidential election and to encourage voter turnout. The Heart of the Country Votes campaign includes Facebook and Instagram accounts as well as public events. The social media posts will encourage voter participation. The Facebook Elorda Live page also allows…
New website makes volunteering easier in Kazakhstan
NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh Ministry of Information and Social Development and National Volunteer Network presented April 29 in the capital the qazvolunteer.kz website for the development of the Kazakh volunteer movement. The website seeks to coordinate communications among more than 200 volunteer organisations and 50,000 volunteers simplifying their communication. “Currently, more than 200 volunteer organisations…
Kazakhstan quadruples construction of student housing, will build dorms for 9,200 students this year
NUR-SULTAN – Twenty-nine dormitories with spots for 9,196 students will start operating this year, said Education and Science Vice Minister Bibigul Assylova at an April 29 press conference after the government meeting. Although the overall number needed is 91,000, the 2019 figure is four times more than previous years. “This has not happened in the…
Fish to EU, grain to Afghanistan: Kazakhstan exports continue to grow in 2019
NUR-SULTAN – Kazakh agricultural exports totalled $610.2 million in January-February, a 12.9-percent increase compared to the same period last year, reported the Ministry of Agriculture press service. The bulk of the exported goods were plants and their processed products ($579.8 million); the balance ($30.4 million) was livestock and its processed products. Afghanistan, China, Iran, Russia,…
Electronic railway ticket sales increase eightfold in five years
NUR-SULTAN – Electronic tickets sales for Kazakh railway transportation have increased eightfold in the last five years. The system eases the purchase process and reduces illegal re-sales. Online sales were introduced in 2014, when 2.55 million tickets were sold. Purchases increased to 6.7 million the following year, then nearly doubled to 11.6 million in 2016.…
Kazakh PM briefs Western diplomats, officials on new measures to attract foreign investment
NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan hopes recently launched measures by the government will increase foreign investment cooperation with countries and institutions, Kazakh Prime Minister Askar Mamin told an April 24 meeting with a group of Western diplomats and officials. American Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Doris Bradbury, British Ambassador to Kazakhstan Michael Gifford, Canadian Ambassador to Kazakhstan…
New Nur-Sultan Emergency Health Centre meets international regulations for public health crises response
NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh government has opened an Emergency Health Operations Centre in the capital aimed towards emergency response preparedness, protecting the life and well-being of the country’s population and minimising the negative consequences of emergency situations. “This centre has been established to implement the requirements of the International Health Regulations (IHR) and the Global…
Kazakhstan tests text messages as way to confirm receipt of state-administered medications
NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan is testing a pilot programme using text messages to confirm patients receive medication paid for by the state. The programme was launched at the end of 2018 and will continue through the end of June. It was launched by the Information System of Drug Provision (ISLO) in cooperation with the Kazakh Ministry…
Yerzhan Maksim to compete in Russia’s ‘The Voice Kids’ final April 26
NUR-SULTAN – Yerzhan Maksim, a 12-year-old schoolboy from Oral, was selected by Russian singer Valeriy Meladze to compete in the final of the Russian reality talent show “The Voice Kids” in Moscow April 26. “A lot of people came to support my son, but only four were let in – me, an aunt, my friend…
Kazakh National Guard to shoot film about fallen soldiers’ heroism in 1995 Tajik-Afghan border battle
NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh National Guard will be shooting a film and TV series about the heroism of fallen Kazakh soldiers in the 1995 battle at the Tajik-Afghan border while protecting the Commonwealth of Independent States’ (CIS) external borders, said National Guard Deputy Commander-in-Chief and Major General Mukhometkali Satov at the April 6 wreath laying…
Kazakh orphans find four-leaf clover with Irish parents
NUR-SULTAN – The statistics show that Irish citizens have adopted more children from Kazakh orphanages than in any other European countries. Today, approximately 150 young ethnic Kazakhs have found new families in Ireland. The Kazakh diaspora in Ireland along with the Kazakh embassy organised a March 30 festive event at the Pearse Museum in Dublin.…
Kazakhstan establishes uniform pricing for pharmaceuticals, makes prices available online
NUR-SULTAN – Uniform prices will be set in all Kazakh pharmacies by May. Medical supply prices will be available online, as well as by request, to make medicine more accessible. “A law will come into force tomorrow, according to which the Kazakh Ministry of Healthcare is vested with the competence to set prices for all…
Atyrau authorities, investor to build waste processing plant
NUR-SULTAN – Atyrau authorities and a private investor will be constructing a waste sorting complex and plastic processing workshop. The high-tech installation is scheduled to launch in May. “The complex was purchased at the expense of a private investor. The equipment will be delivered from Belarussian Sifaniya-Ekotekhnika company, which supplies waste processing equipment to the…
Young Kazakh entrepreneurs to pitch start-ups at Echelon Asia Summit 2019
NUR-SULTAN – Ten teams from the acceleration programme Smart Zholy will present their start-up projects at Singapore’s Echelon Asia Summit May 23-24. Twenty teams of English-speaking Kazakh entrepreneurs aged 18 to 30 were selected on a competitive basis and given access to world-class experts to develop innovative products and services that have potential in markets…
Construction of Almaty’s Kok Zhailau resort to be delayed 3-5 years
NUR-SULTAN – Construction of the Kok Zhailau Mountain resort near Almaty will be delayed three to five years as recommended by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Almaty Akim (Mayor) Baurzhan Baibek announced April 8 during an Almaty Public Council meeting. “I suggest to once again go through preparatory work for this project and to delay it for…
Kazakhstan simplifies import/export procedures
NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan recently introduced two changes to simplify import/export procedures, with major documentation now available in postal offices or online. The first change, introduced March 19, involves export procedures for Kazakh entrepreneurs. “I think that 2019 should be memorable for Kazakh entrepreneurs as the year when online export of goods became simplified. Soon, we…
Kazakh population’s income from targeted social and housing assistance increases by one-third
NUR-SULTAN – The Kazakh population’s income from targeted social and housing assistance (TSA) increased by one-third in 2018, contributing to last year’s 11.3-percent growth. Income per capita was 164,700 tenge (US$434.48) and the government expanded the percentage of individuals who receive the assistance. The major income, 121,400 tenge (US$320.25) or an 8.4-percent annual increase, comes…
Cairo University students can now major in Kazakh language
NUR-SULTAN – Cairo University has added Kazakh language as a major in the Faculty of Literature, it announced at its March 21 ceremonial opening. “Lately, there is a growing interest in Egypt in learning Kazakh language, which is due to the socio-economic development of our state, the strengthening of its role in the international arena…
Senate speaker raised concern over environmental problems in Kazakhstan
NUR-SULTAN –The Kazakh Senate speaker recently voiced concerns over environmental problems in Kazakhstan and urged legislators to address the issue. Senate Speaker Dariga Nazarbayeva raised concerns over Caspian Sea area and Mangistau Region environmental problems during a March 28 Senate plenary session. Nazarbayeva discussed recent environmental threats, measures that have been taken and work that…
Oralmans may acquire Kazakh citizenship through a simplified procedure until Dec. 31
NUR-SULTAN – Former President Nursultan Nazarbayev directed the government March 16, three days before he announced his resignation, to allow an extension for people with the status of oralman ( the “returning ones”, ethnic Kazakhs who immigrate to Kazakhstan since its independence) to acquire Kazakh citizenship through a simplified procedure. People who receive the status…
Kazakhstan pays $12,000 since January to those who have reported corruption
NUR-SULTAN – People in Kazakhstan have been paid 4.5 million tenge (US$11,857.50) for reporting on corruption cases since the beginning of the year, said Kazakh Agency on Civil Service Affairs and Anti-Corruption Department Head of Public Relations Arman Berdalin at a recent briefing of the National Bureau of Anti-Corruption. Since January, 1.1 million tenge (US$2,898)…
