Kazakhstan ratifies Caspian Sea convention
ASTANA – Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev signed the law “On the Ratification of the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea” Feb. 8, establishing the principles for peaceful use of the body. “I would like to congratulate all of you on the signing of the Convention. Today, my counterparts and I summarised the…
UNESCO includes Kazakh horse breeding spring rites on Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list
ASTANA – The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has included the traditional spring festive rites of Kazakh horse breeders on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) of Humanity, reported the Ministry of Culture and Sports press service. “Preceded by year-long preparations, the main constituents of the practice are…
Cargo transportation between Kazakhstan and China increased 38 percent in 2018
ASTANA – The volume of transportation between Kazakhstan and China was 13,979 tonnes and increased 38 percent in 2018 compared with 2017, according to an announcement at the Jan. 28 meeting of the Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ) delegation and Urumqi Railway company in Urumqi. Some 8,500 tonnes of cargoes were transported from Kazakhstan to China,…
Astana Akimat urges service organisations to repair problem residential building façades
ASTANA – The Urban Environment Metropolitan Department of Control and Quality recently inspected the façades of 1,265 houses and 486 service organisations, said department head Tolegen Kulushev at a January meeting of the city akimat (administration). As a result, the department issued 466 prescriptions, 439 of which were executed within the specified time. Twenty-seven were…
Expert Council on Digitisation discusses e-government, developing startup culture
ASTANA – The International Expert Council on Digitisation discussed at its Jan. 31 meeting international practices in digital development, the role of e-government as well as how to nurture young talent and develop a startup culture. The gathering also discussed economic sustainability in developing technology and the impact of innovation ecosystems on education and employment.…
Kazakhstan to expand types of goods exported
ASTANA – Kazakhstan will expand the types of products it exports this year,, said Kazakh Vice Minister for Industry and Infrastructure Development Arystan Kabykenov at a January press conference. “Sodium cyanide will be shipped to Russia; semolina to China, Europe, Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Russia and Uzbekistan; bags to Russia and Tajikistan; ammonium sulfate to Kyrgyzstan, Russia…
Kazakh athletes to participate in world’s most complex triathlon for first time
ASTANA – Four triathletes from Almaty, Elena Kun, Madina Kurmanbayeva, Elfira Dudnik and Anel Sydykova, have announced that they will be competing in the 480-kilometre Enduroman Arch to Arc, the most complex triathlon in the world. “In July, our team, Iron Moms KZ, is going to take part in the multi-day Enduroman Arch-Arc ultra-triathlon. This…
Kazakh national cycling team wins five gold medals in Asia
ASTANA – The Kazakh national cycling team won 14 medals, including five gold, at the Jan. 9-13 cycle racing events at the 2019 Asian Cycling Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia. The country was represented in all categories at the championships for the first time, reports the Kazakh Cycling Federation (KCF). The athletes competed in individual and…
Uly Dala Sazy project seeks to popularise folk music among youth
ASTANA – The Qazaqstan national TV channel recently began streaming a new musical television project called “Uly Dala Sazy” (The sounds of the Great Steppe) to popularise Kazakh traditional music among the younger generation. Uly Daza Sazy premiered Jan. 13. It will air Sundays at 9:05 p.m. until July 28. According to Chairperson of the…
National Bank of Kazakhstan keeps base rate at 9.25 percent
ASTANA – National Bank of Kazakhstan announced plans to keep the base rate at 9.25 percent with an interest rate band of +/- 1 percent, reported the bank’s press service on Jan. 14. Rates on operations for the provision and withdrawal of liquidity were also left unchanged at 10.25 and 8.25 percent, respectively. The official…
Astana-Schuchinsk toll road revenues reached $4 million in 2018
ASTANA – New charging systems and more stringent enforcement of vehicle control helped increase 2018 revenue from the Astana-Schuchinsk toll road to 1.54 billion tenge (US$4.06 million), reported the press service of the KazAvtoZhol national company. The total traffic flow rate for 2018 exceeded 2.8 million vehicles. Compared to 2017, the flow rate of vehicles…
Kazakhstan’s National Bank identifies microfinance, insurance organisations’ 2018 violations
ASTANA – The Kazakh National Bank recently identified microfinance and insurance organisations’ violations of consumer rights and interests committed in 2018. The bank applied 17 sanctions and limited measures to microfinance organisations and eight sanctions and limited measures to insurance organisations. Microfinance organisations provide financial services, such as microsavings, microloans, micro-insurance products and money transfers…
Kazakh poetry and prose tradition and culture centrism challenges experts to properly translate them
ASTANA – Translators, writers and representatives of publishing organisations in China, France, Russia, Spain and the United Kingdom discussed the difficulties they encountered when translating samples of contemporary Kazakh poetry and prose at a Jan. 14 meeting in the capital. As part of Ruhani Zhangyru (Modernisation of Kazakhstan’s Identity) programme, they have been translating and…
OneWeb to launch satellites from Baikonur
ASTANA – OneWeb will be launching a constellation of satellites which will provide broadband Internet access to users worldwide by fully covering the Earth’s surface. OneWeb British communications satellites mounted on Soyuz spacecraft will be launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome beginning in the fourth quarter of the year, reported Arianespace. The company, headquartered in France, provides services…
Tele2 AB telecom operator to leave Kazakh market
ASTANA – Swedish company Tele2 AB has announced its intention to sell its stake in Mobile Telecom Service (Tele2), the Tele2 Group-Kazakhtelecom joint venture, to Kazakhtelecom. The closing is expected in approximately six months. The Dec. 12 agreement, whereby Kazakhtelecom will purchase 75 percent of Kcell from Telia Company and Fintur, gives Tele2 AB the…
Public, private Alakol Lake investment drives tourist boom
ASTANA – Alakol Lake tourists will have an opportunity to enjoy a more comfortable stay in a four-star hotel and new entertainment centre this year. Construction on a hotel worth over half a billion tenge (US$1.32 million) and an entertainment centre worth 230 million tenge (US$607,533.5) is underway. Almost 700,000 tourists visited Alakol from the…
Kazakh boxer Gennady Golovkin splits with his promoter
ASTANA – Former world middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin (38-1-1, 34 KOs) has parted ways with his promoter, Tom Leffler. Now the Kazakh fighter is a free agent and is negotiating with promoter Eddie Hearn and the DAZN streaming service. The split was announced on Twitter by ESPN television channel insider and expert Dan Rafael. Golovkin…
Kazakh designer wins NASA competition
ASTANA – Kazakh designer Arsen Seksenbayev was among the winners of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) competition with the best sketch for the space laboratory. Seksenbayev’s sketch will be the basis for building a laboratory aboard the International Space Station to study extra-terrestrial plants. NASA has offered a preliminary contract and invited him…
Astana clinics introduce health bracelets with patients’ medical records
ASTANA – A pilot project involving health bracelets with QR codes has been introduced at capital clinics Nos. 4, 9 and 10. The bracelets provide information about a patient’s medical records and contacts for relatives. The device should help chronically ill individuals during emergency hospitalisation. The project is part of the Management for Chronic Non-communicable…
Smart locks to be installed in Astana residential complexes
ASTANA – Smart locks will be introduced in the capital’s residential complexes, reports 24.kz. A new mobile application will allow users to access courtyards, parking and apartments with a single electronic key. Access may be extended to guests via e-mail or short message services (SMS). The app is suitable for all types of premises, including…
Kazakh housing prices expected to grow 10 percent in 2019, Astana remains highest priced city
ASTANA – Housing prices in Kazakhstan are expected to increase 10 percent in 2019, according to a recent report by the Union of Builders of Kazakhstan. The rising exchange rate of the U.S. dollar versus the tenge can be one of the reasons. Luxury residential complexes with parking and other amenities are not in demand…
KTZ will notify passengers about train delays
ASTANA – Beginning Jan. 1, Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ) will notify passengers about train delays of more than three hours, said Asset Asavbayev, chair of the Ministry for Investments and Development transport committee, at a Dec. 6 press conference in the capital. Passengers will receive an SMS notification (text) free of charge, and Asavbayev stressed…
Kyzylorda changes time zones to save electricity, improve public health
ASTANA – Beginning Dec. 21, Kyzylorda clocks will be turned back one hour, announced Regional Akim (Governor) Krymbek Kusherbayev. According to experts, the transfer will eliminate physiological abnormalities affecting people’s health and cut electricity expenses. A video message from the head of the region’s residents is posted on the Kyzylorda regional administration website. “According to…
Mobile device registration deadline nears, reminds minister
ASTANA –Kazakh Minister of Information and Communications Dauren Abayev reminded the public at a Dec. 10 press-conference that mobile operators will not service mobile devices that have not passed International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) registration after the Jan. 1 deadline. The Kazakh Law on Amendments and Additions to Certain Legislative Acts on Issues of Information…
Kazakhstan may postpone national railway IPO
ASTANA – Postponing Kazakhstan Temir Zholy’s (KTZ) initial public offering (IPO) until 2025 has been requested on behalf of the National Association of Mining and Mining and Metallurgical Enterprises and the Kazakh Union of Manufacturers and Exporters. “The Kazakh Ministry of National Economy is now considering IPO launches in the next year or two, which…
