Winners Announced at Open Central Asia Literature Festival in Almaty
ALMATY – The third Open Central Asia Book Forum and Literary Festival was held in Almaty from Nov. 14 to 17, featuring contests, film screenings, book launches, panel discussions and presentations by authors from the region and around the world. A $17,000 prize goes toward the publication of the winning work in the literature category.…
EBRD President Visits Tajikistan, Signs Financing Agreements with Private Sector
ASTANA – European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) President Suma Chakrabarti visited Tajikistan on Nov. 17-18, the first official visit by an EBRD president to that country in nine years, an EBRD press release announced on Nov. 17. Two agreements were signed during the visit, and Chakrabati met with high-level officials and addressed Tajikistan’s…
South African Official Promotes Business, People-to-People Connections in Astana
ASTANA – Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Nomaindiya Mfeketo visited Astana from Nov. 5-6 to co-chair the fourth round of South Africa-Kazakhstan Bilateral Consultations with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Askar Mussinov and address the first Kazakhstan-South Africa Business Forum held under the bilateral consultations. Her mission also included a lecture…
Stalled IPO Programme Relaunches with KEGOC Stock Release
ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s stalled People’s IPO programme has been revived to hold a new public stock offering, this time in the state-operated Kazakhstan Electric Grid Operating Company (KEGOC). Shares have been available by application to citizens of Kazakhstan since Nov. 5 and will be until Dec. 3; they will begin to be traded publicly on…
Kazakh-German Business Council Focuses on Infrastructure, Mining, Investment Hub
ASTANA – At the Kazakh-German Business Council held on Nov. 10 in Astana during the visit of German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the focus was on promoting Kazakhstan’s investment opportunities, particularly in infrastructure development, mining and innovative technologies, as well as the access Kazakhstan provides to neighbouring markets. Addressing the council in Astana’s Hilton Garden…
Second Astana Public School Joins German University Preparation Programme
ASTANA – Astana’s public school No. 67 is the newest partner in the German language programme DSD, a 22-year-old government-funded initiative that partners with public schools around the world to promote the German language. The programme, funded by the German Central Agency for Schools Abroad (ZfA), sends native German speakers to teach, supplies schools with…
American Documentary Producers Tour Kazakhstan with Film Showcase
ASTANA – American filmmakers Andrea Meditch and Lisa Olken are travelling through Kazakhstan as part of the American Film Showcase programme, participating in the red carpet premiere of five award-winning American documentaries in Astana, conducting classes with film students and answering questions at screenings of their films across the country from Oct. 23 to Nov.…
Stronger Board, More Effective Government Interaction to Mark Samruk Kazyna Transformation, Says Fund’s Board Chairman
ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s Samruk Kazyna Sovereign Wealth Fund will redistribute responsibilities within the fund and change its portfolio structure and approach to investment as part of its recently announced transformation, Chairman of the Board of Samruk Kazyna Umirzak Shukeyev recently told The Astana Times in an exclusive interview. This will require internal changes, including training…
New Book Illuminates Kazakhstan’s History with Maps, Illustrations
ASTANA – A new book edited by Hong Kong-based writer Jeremy Tredinnick collects essays, photographs, maps, artefacts and other visual and textual information to illuminate the historical passage of the many cultures and peoples that have called Kazakhstan home. “An Illustrated History of Kazakhstan: Asia’s Heartland in Context,” to be released by Hong Kong’s Odyssey…
In Kazakhstan, Bride-Kidnapping Video Found to be Fake, Practice Illegal but not Completely Eradicated
ASTANA – Following the release last week by the New York Post, among other media outlets, of a video claiming to show a bride-kidnapping in Kazakhstan’s Akmola region, the nation’s officials are assuring the world that the practice is illegal and widely condemned, and the Prosecutor General’s Office has declared the video a harmless pantomime.…
Astana Marriott Launches New Sunday Brunch
ASTANA – The Astana Marriott Hotel launched its new Sunday brunch on Oct. 19 in the hotel’s Aroma Restaurant. Brunches will be held every third Sunday of each month and feature an international buffet and a separate children’s play and learning area organized by the team of Astana Gymboree. Brunches will run from 12:30 p.m.…
German Photographer Explores Kazakh Culture, Energy Plans
ASTANA – Photographer Dieter Seitz, whose work focuses on people and cultural issues, has chosen Kazakhstan to be the subject of a multi-year photo project exploring its blend of cultures and the industry upon which the country’s prosperity is built. The photos, which he plans to show in exhibitions in Germany and Kazakhstan and publish…
Kazakh Senate Elections Met International Standards, Say Int’l Observers
ASTANA – The regional administrations (maslikhats) of Kazakhstan elected 16 new senators on Oct. 1 in a process that unfolded largely without incident, reported Central Election Commission (CEC) member Marat Sarsembayev on Oct. 10. “[International observers] told us that the evaluation is high and that there are no shortcomings concerning this election. This is their…
EU, Central Asian Cooperation Key to Security and Prosperity, Says Latvian Ambassador
ASTANA – Latvian Ambassador to Kazakhstan Juris Maklakovs will wrap up his embassy’s turn as NATO point of contact in Kazakhstan at the end of this year, but the connection between the two countries will remain as Latvia prepares to take over the EU presidency following the signing of a new cooperation agreement between the…
Regional Governments Possess All Components Necessary to Improve Public Services, Says Official
ASTANA – The governments in the region and Kazakhstan’s government, in particular, are working to improve service delivery and are reviewing European best practices, experts involved in reforming Kazakhstan’s civil service said during an Oct. 3 roundtable meeting in Baku, Azerbaijan titled, “Effective Public Service Delivery.”. “The governments of the region are working hard to…
Kazakh FM Backs New Asian Security Concept, Outlines Steps to Stronger CICA at Anniversary Event
ASTANA – Voicing support for the new Asian security concept proposed by China, Kazakh Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov called for more contact between members, more organisational institutions and other measures to strengthen the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building in Asia (CICA) at an event marking CICA Day on Oct. 6. The concept, outlined by Chinese…
EBRD Arranges $200 Million for Environmentally Friendly Technology for Private Sector Oil Company
ASTANA – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has arranged a financing package of $200 for private oil company KOM Munai to finance new environmentally technologies and improvements to the efficiency of its oilfield operations in Kazakhstan. KOM Munai, a subsidiary of OMV Petrom SA, Romania’s largest oil and gas company and a…
Pakistan Ambassador Hopes to Increase Trade, Urges More Regional Cooperation on Afghanistan
ASTANA – Ambassador of Pakistan to Kazakhstan Shaukat Ali Mukadam wants to make the trade and economic cooperation between the two countries more indicative of their warm and long-standing political relationship. As he pointed out in an interview with The Astana Times on Sept. 25, Pakistan was one of the first countries to establish an…
Idrissov Calls for More Action, Promotes Declaration for Nuclear Weapon Free World at Nuclear Weapons Elimination Meeting
ASTANA – Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan Erlan Idrissov addressed a ministerial meeting marking the first International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons in New York on Sept. 26, cautioning that accelerating weapons development threatens global security and calling on nuclear powers to take further steps toward disarmament. “This meeting takes place at a…
International Team Finishes First Phase of Snow Leopard Conservation Project
ASTANA – An international team has just completed the first phase of fieldwork in a project to conduct a population survey of snow leopards in the Almaty State Nature Reserve in Almaty oblast, as well as to model the potential impact of climate change on the reserve and its snow leopard population. The research is…
Women’s Water Polo Team Takes Bronze in Asian Games
ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s women’s water polo team recently won the bronze medal at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea. Games officials announced on Sept. 24 that China won the gold and Japan, which tied Kazakhstan in their head-to-head match, was awarded the silver based on having scored more goals in their match against…
BRICS Representatives Discuss Latest Summit at Kazakh Humanitarian Law University
ASTANA – Ambassadors and representatives of the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) discussed results of the most recent BRICS summit in Fortaleza, Brazil, including the establishment of a new BRICS development bank and currency reserve, at the Kazakh Humanitarian Law University (KAZGUU) in Astana on Sept. 23. They also took questions…
Malaysian Food and Culture Week Opens at Astana Marriott
ASTANA – Malaysian Food and Culture week opened at the Aroma Restaurant in Astana’s Marriott hotel on Sept. 23 and will run through Sept. 26, with entertainment, shopping and a changing menu of Malaysian dishes presented each night. Included in the nightly events, which run from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m., is a Malaysian buffet…
Global IT Company Eyes Kazakhstan as Next Hub
ASTANA – UST Global, an international information technology services and software development company, is exploring the possibility of moving to Kazakhstan. The company, which has a presence in the Americas, Europe, East and South Asia and the Middle East, now wants to expand into Central Asia and UST Global Chief Commercial Officer Murali Gopalan told…
EBRD Predicts Central Asian Economic Growth, Negative Impacts from Ukraine-Related Sanctions
ASTANA – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) released its Regional Economic Prospects report on Sept. 18, showing relatively strong growth in Central Asia, improving growth in Central Europe and Turkey, but weakened growth prospects for all across the EBRD’s transition region. The weakened growth prospects are primarily the result of the conflict…
