Articles by Saltanat Boteu

ASTANA – Turkestan is making progress on the three main elements of its Turkestan Major Plan, City Akim (Mayor) Alipbek Userbayev told a delegation of government officials visiting the region Dec. 21, reported the Turkestan region Akimat’s (regional administration) press centre. The plan’s primary elements are the city’s historical centre, spiritual and cultural centre and…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s first cinema hall for people with autism spectrum disorders opened Dec. 18 at the ADK Shopping Centre in Almaty. The project, organised by the Bolashak Corporate Fund, Walt Disney Company Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Chaplin Cinemas, aims to integrate them into social life. The hall and the films are adapted…

ASTANA – Beginning in January, the Tandau Foundation’s Dostupnyi (Accessible) Pavlodar project aimed at making public spaces accessible for those with limited mobility will expand throughout the country as a part of Inclusive Kazakhstan project. The project is aimed at protecting and enforcing the rights of persons with disabilities to free movement and equal access…

ASTANA – Astana Hub is a concept designed to create a system for start-up development, including interaction with local businesses and government. It seeks to find and create Kazakh experts in specific areas to offer their know-how internationally, such as in the field of smart city technologies. “Originally we were going to be a tech…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan is taking the lead in Central Asia on comprehensive modernisation, said regional experts at a recent gathering in Astana to discuss the latest findings by members of the Almaty Club research group. The Almaty Club is a group of journalists and researchers in the social sciences and humanities from around Central Asia.…

ASTANA – The Kazakh National Tourism Award was introduced this year to encourage tourism organisations, travel bloggers and other involved parties to improve their services accordingly in developing the tourism sphere of the country. The award ceremony also is aimed at creating an information and communication platform and attracting the attention of the society to…

ASTANA – City officials will begin the two-year construction in 2019 of an automobile bridge across the Yessil River to reduce traffic between the city’s left and right banks. The bridge will be located along Tauelsizdik Avenue on the section from the right bank’s No. 46 Street to the left bank’s No. 27 Street. The…

ASTANA – The Kazakh junior hockey team will compete in Group B of the 2019 World Junior Championship, to be held from Dec. 26 to Jan. 5 in Canada. Kazakhstan is rejoining the top 10 national teams participating in the preliminary round of the competition for the first time since 2009, reports prosports.kz. In the…

ASTANA – The Ambassadors Spouses Association (ASA) recently distributed the 2018 Christmas Charity Bazaar’s fund among 40 charity organisations, several individuals and bought equipment for a clinic in Almaty. The fund collected $102,636 this year. The ASA made agreements with most of the beneficiaries. Out of 70 applications, 40 were chosen to receive funding. “Today…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan exports products to 110 countries, said President Nursultan Nazarbayev during a Dec. 11 national teleconference in the capital. He spoke with 28 enterprises from different fields and regions and launched production units in alternative energy, agriculture and metallurgy. “Our key markets are China, Russia, Central Asian countries and the European Union. In…

ASTANA – The laws on domestic violence prevention in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan need to be developed and completed with more detailed prevention and protection mechanisms, according to experts from the countries. They emphasised domestic violence cannot be tolerated and should not be a social norm. The experts, speaking at a recent event, singled out…

ASTANA – Although the Shonzhy village in the Almaty region’s Uyghur district is located far from the Almaty city, the village is a popular tourism destination. The village has thermal springs, the season for which begins with autumn frosts. The distance between Almaty and Shonzhy is 243 kilometres. The journey from Almaty to the thermal…

ASTANA – Implementing smart heat metering devices in houses across the country, a project associated with Kazakhstan’s digitisation, will reduce citizens’ expenses, said Minister for Investment and Development Zhenis Kassymbek during a Dec. 4 government meeting in the capital. The devices were announced in conjunction with a change in paperwork required for construction. The new…

ASTANA – Green Cat Art Laboratory started in 2011 as a hobby to make handmade products. Seven years later, it has turned into a business. Specialising in wooden pins, Green Cat also makes pendants, earrings, postcards, pictures and knitted toys. “Green Cat’s history began in 2011. We waited for the birth of our son. I…

ASTANA – The ambassador of Oman to Kazakhstan spoke with The Astana Times about political, economic and cultural relations between the two nations during the Nov. 21 celebration of Oman’s 48th National Day at Astana’s Radisson Hotel, stressing tourism, agriculture and energy as the main fields of cooperation. The event started with a welcome speech…

ASTANA – The winners of the Nov. 11 Kazakhstan national final of the World Electronic Sports Games (WESG) cybersports world championship in Almaty will participate in the online Central Asia qualifiers for the opportunity to compete in China in the 2019 WESG Grand Final and win its $5.5 million prize, reported vesti.kz. The national finals…

ASTANA – The Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) introduced its services and cooperation opportunities to a local and international audience at its Nov. 23 law conference. The event included four presentations covering AIFC’s general legal framework, jurisdiction and financial and ancillary services, participants’ registration and listing on the Astana International Exchange (AIX). AIFC advisory council…

ASTANA – U.S.-based motivator and activist for people with physical challenges Mohammad Sayed presented Nov. 26 in Astana the comic book he created about a man in a wheelchair. “The important thing I want people to get out of this presentation is no matter what kind of disability we have, what part of the world…

ASTANA – Kazakh boxers Daniyar Yeleussinov and Sultan Zaurbek improved their rating on the BoxRec International Boxing Record Keeping Platform after their Nov. 24 wins at the Salle Médecin of Monte-Carlo Casino in Monaco, reported sport.kz. Yeleussinov’s fight ended in the third round with Yeleussinov’s victory over Nicaraguan Marcos Mojica (16-3-2, 12 KOs). In the…

ASTANA – The city of Semey in the East Kazakhstan region has a rich history reflected in its many museums. The exhibits are an attractive cultural tourism destination. Semey’s history as a settlement started in 1718 when Tsarist Russia built the Semipalatinsk fortress. The fortress, which emerged as a border and military support base, became…

ASTANA – Yerlan Kumiskaliyev, chair of the Atyrau Is a Small Country public fund and one of Kazakhstan’s 100 New Faces, is working to support children with brain and spinal cord injuries. He is also building a small village for the youngsters to help them adapt and become full members of society. Born in 1971…

ASTANA – Kazakh contemporary artist Suinbike Suleimenova presents a documentary about artist Lidia Blinova as a part of Focus Kazakhstan project that lasts Oct. 2018 – March 2019. For her, the film is an achievement of art activism that contributed to the revival of Kazakh contemporary art history and women artists’ representation. The movie was…

ASTANA – Zhansaya Abdumalik reached the fourth quarterfinals of the 2018 Women’s World Chess Championship underway Nov. 3-23 in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia, according to the Kazakhstan Chess Federation. It is the first time a Kazakh made it to the quarterfinals in an adult world championship. “This is the first adult world championship I’m participating in. I…

ASTANA – The 11th annual Diplomatic Christmas Charity Bazaar will take place Dec. 2 at the Astana Radisson Hotel. The event raises money for children and adults with physical and mental challenges, poor families and orphanages. It also allows dozens of embassies to showcase the culture and products of their countries. Forty-six embassies, charity organisations…

ASTANA – The Kazakh Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra named after Zhambyl gave concerts in Dublin, Manchester, London, Milan and Rome during their recent week-long tour across Europe. The tour started in Dublin and continued in Manchester, London, Milan and Rome. The Kazakh folk music played at the concerts brought the traditional sounds of the Great Steppe…