Foreign media on Kazakhstan: Kazakhstan sets date for nuclear power plant referendum, Kazakhstan prairies ready to rumble for World Nomad Games in Astana
From the recent news about Kazakhstan setting a date for nuclear power plant referendum, introducing innovative GovTech solutions for digital transformation in social protection, and preparing to host the World Nomad Games in Astana, Kazinform News Agency provides a weekly review of Kazakhstan’s coverage in foreign media.
The Diplomat: Kazakhstan sets date for nuclear power plant referendum
According to The Diplomat, On October 6, Kazakhstan will hold a referendum on the construction of a nuclear power plant.
Amid an extensive address delivered on September 2 opening the new parliament session, Tokayev announced the referendum date, and the next day the necessary presidential decree was issued. In his speech, Tokayev said, “Given the growing global energy deficit, we are in dire need of reliable and environmentally friendly energy sources.”
According to the IEA, as of 2021, 48.8% of Kazakhstan’s total energy supply comes from coal, followed by oil at 24.9%, and natural gas at 24.7%. Hydropower accounts for 1.2%, with 0.4% from renewables like solar and wind.
Kazakhstan holds 12% of global uranium reserves and produces 43% of the world’s uranium. A referendum on constructing a nuclear power plant will be held on October 6.
UNDP: Kazakhstan presents innovative GovTech solutions for digital transformation in social protection
UNDP reports that on September 3, at the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Digital Inclusion and Transformation, Kazakhstan presented its innovative GovTech solutions.
The centerpiece of these solutions is the “Digital Family Card” designed to ensure equal access for Kazakh citizens to state support in the social sector. One of the primary goals of the project is to serve as a signal source for identifying the prerequisites or onset of social risks that lead to difficult life situations, thereby becoming a predictive tool for the state’s social obligations.
“Today, we gather at a crucial juncture in the digital transformation of Asia and the Pacific. Kazakhstan has emerged as a leader in pioneering digital solutions that resonate not only within the country but already recognized far beyond its borders. The Digital Family Card, developed with the support of UNDP, stands as an example of how digital tools can transform social protection payment system, ensuring that benefits are delivered with efficiency and transparency to those who need them most,” said Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission of Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations.
The “Digital Family Card” ensures equal access for Kazakh citizens to the state support system. It functions as a tool for identifying medium- and long-term social policy goals and serves as a daily “electronic notifier” informing citizens about their entitlement to various forms of assistance based on their social status.
“The digital transformation has affected all areas of life, and the social sphere is no exception. Today, Kazakhstan is one of the pioneers in the digitalization of the social sphere and is actively developing online services for its citizens. Kazakhstan ranks eighth in the world in the provision of online services dimension of the UN E-Government Development Index 2022. The “Digital Family Card” is a unique tool that allows you to assess the well-being of each family and determine their need for social support. This makes it possible to adapt support measures in good time and prevent social exclusion. In addition, the system helps to increase transparency and accountability in the field of social policy,” emphasized Svetlana Zhakupova, Minister of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
Today, the “Digital Family Card” utilizes more than 100 socio-economic indicators, making it a reliable source of data for decision-making in social protection. Since the launch of this innovative platform in 2022, Kazakh citizens have received more than 2.2 million social services. Kazakhstan is now recognized as one of the leaders in GovTech solutions and continues to rapidly develop its digital ecosystem.
The Times of Central Asia: New satellite internet may appear in Kazakhstan
The Times of Central Asia reports that Kazakhstan plans to agree with Amazon to use “Project Kuiper” satellite internet, a competitor to Elon Musk’s well-known Starlink.
Minister of Digital Development, Innovation, and Aerospace Industry Zhaslan Madiev said the agreement was signed during the Asia-Pacific Conference on Digital Transformation, which will be organized by UNESCAP in Astana.
Madiev emphasized that competition between satellite providers will improve the quality of internet services for citizens at an affordable price.
Amazon began deploying the Project Kuiper network by launching the first two prototype satellites last year. More than 3,200 satellites are planned to be deployed in the future, but a full-fledged launch has been delayed until the end of 2024.
Kazakh Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov, who participated in the conference, also said that the 5G network will cover all regional centers of Kazakhstan by the end of 2025.
A Starlink pilot project was also launched in Kazakhstan; under this project, Starlink internet will be available to two thousand remote rural schools.
Archeology Magazine: Medieval Kurgans with mustaches unearthed in Kazakhstan
Ten medieval burial mounds, or kurgans, have been discovered in central Kazakhstan, according to a Live Science report. Archaeologist Zhanbolat Utubaev of the Margulan Institute of Archaeology said that three of the mounds are topped with stone ridges known as mustaches. Excavation of one of the kurgans without a mustache uncovered the remains of a man and a triangular arrowhead. The kurgans are thought to have been constructed by a nomadic group prior to the Mongol conquest of the region in the thirteenth century, Utubaev concluded.
Euronews: Kazakhstan prairies ready to rumble for World Nomad Games in Astana
Euronews reports that more than 2,000 athletes are going to revive ancient warfare skills into sports disciplines such as horseback archery and falconry.
As the Paralympics wrap up in Paris, another global sporting event begins in Astana, Kazakhstan: the World Nomad Games.
It's a bi-annual initiative where athletes use the ancient warfare skills of historically nomadic peoples.
The 21 disciplines include horse wrestling, horseback archery, martial arts and falconry, as well as cultural and scientific games.
The World Nomad Games are part of the UNESCO World Heritage List, aiming to develop and preserve ethno-sports and the ethno-cultural movement.
“The World Nomad Games are a unique possibility to show the world our country’s rich historical and cultural heritage,” Kazakhstan’s Culture and Information Minister Aida Balayeva told Euronews.
They also allow the country “to show the spirit of our nation, to show the soul of Kazakhstan's people,” she added.
The games run from 8 to 13 September, with over 2,000 athletes from 89 countries participating. Organizers note that the event now includes nations without nomadic heritage. “From Australia to Canada, South Africa to Great Britain,” said Kazakh Tourism chairman Kairat Sadvakassov, highlighting its global growth.
The first three games were in Kyrgyzstan, with the last held in Turkey.
IMF: Kazakhstan’s new banknote series tells the story of the little-known but extraordinary Saka
Just 50 km east of Almaty, Kazakhstan’s largest city, lies a Saka burial mound dating back to the Iron Age, reports IMF. Unearthed in 1969, the site held the country’s most significant archaeological find—the Golden Man. Clad in a suit of gold with a tall, pointed headdress resembling a crown, the ancient warrior was buried with over 4,000 gold artifacts, a short sword and dagger, and a silver bowl inscribed with the oldest known example of runic writing in Asia. The artistry and craftsmanship of the artifacts—mostly animal motifs—are highly sophisticated, shedding light on a little-known civilization light-years ahead of its time.
After Kazakhstan’s independence, the Golden Man became a national icon. The warrior’s armor takes pride of place in the national museum in Astana and tours the world, representing the country’s rich cultural heritage and deep roots in central Asia, and is depicted on various state symbols and emblems. Elements of this ancient culture are also featured in the design of the country’s new banknote series issued in December 2023, which is “dedicated to the Saka culture, emphasizing their connection with nature,” according to the National Bank of Kazakhstan.
The Saka were an ancient tribe of nomadic warriors, later known as the Scythians. From about 900 to 200 BC they dominated the Eurasian steppe—a historically important travel and trade route that preceded the Silk Road. But they were largely unknown until the 18th century, when widespread looting of the burial mounds led to the discovery of hundreds of artifacts.
Dozens of archaeological sites have been uncovered since, but the Issyk kurgan, excavated in the 1960s, was the first of only two burial mounds found completely intact.
The front of the recently released 5,000 tenge banknote features a tree of life branch with a hovering bird from the Golden Man’s headgear, symbolizing the connection to nature. A golden eagle–shaped artifact—recovered from the Taldy 2 burial ground in the Karaganda region—represents freedom and strength, according to the bank, and the country’s strong ancestral ties to raptors, widely used for hunting.
On the back is a DNA spiral, which symbolizes the “infinite passage of time.” As the late Shirin Akiner, a renowned scholar of Central Asian studies, noted in a documentary, there is still much to discover: “It does throw light on a period that really is dark—not because nothing is happening but because we simply don’t know enough about it.”
BBC: Valleys, eagles and tranquility: A trip through Kazakhstan’s national parks
According to BBC, in Kazakhstan’s national parks, pleasure comes from not only the blisteringly huge landscapes, but also from proximity to nature: listening to the soft waves of a mountain lake lapping against the shore or hearing the crack of an eagle’s wings as it soars across a mountain-peak tinged golden in the morning sun. There’s space to breathe in this Central Asian country, and the space is beautiful, the article quotes.
“It was the stillness that opened my eyes to the beauty of the place,” says Janet Ibbotson, a poet and artist who swapped holidaying locally for Kazakstan’s Charyn Canyon. “I needed vastness and I wanted incredible colors and rocks and culture and heritage, and I found it in Kazakhstan. Other places I used to love were getting so busy.”
The country’s diverse geography includes the Valley of Balls in Mangystau, with unique rock formations, and the magnificent Bozzhyra Gorge, reminiscent of Arizona’s Monument Valley.
The Tien Shan Mountains house alpine lakes like Kolsai and Kaindy, surrounded by wildlife like bears and snow leopards.
“Charyn Gorge marks a fault-line that runs through Kazakhstan – it’s a shock to come to it through the desert, where the ground suddenly gives way and is replaced by a remarkably burnt orange layered chasm. There are five gorges in total, and one of the most beautiful, the Valley of Castles, is almost silent, its silver-orange walls deep and clutching onto 12 million years of the Earth's history. It feels like a city of rocks, with tight corridors and walls of stone. Visitors can often catch a glimpse of wide-winged eagles flying overhead,” said Janet Ibbotson.
Kazakhstan offers visitors serene experiences with few crowds, from the stark beauty of Termilik Canyon to Akmola’s lakes and forests, where the Botai-Burabay museum showcases nomadic heritage. The Korgalzhyn State Nature Reserve, a UNESCO site, features flamingos and rich wildlife.
“Kazakhstan is a country blessed with more opportunities for getting away from the madding crowd, and whether you choose Akmola, Mangystau or the Tien Shan as your natural medicine – or to link them all together on a mega-road trip through the world's ninth largest country, visitors are guaranteed to leave Kazakhstan refreshed and awed,” the article concludes.
For Janet, she relishes the chance to discover a place with fresh eyes. “You can get off the beaten track anywhere if you try hard enough. But Kazakhstan is magical to explore now, wherever you choose to go.”
Business Today: Indians explore new horizons in travel. Kazakhstan tops preferred destinations
Business Today reports, that in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, travel enthusiasm among Indians has surged, with their interests extending well beyond domestic borders. Recent data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) reveals that spending on foreign travel has skyrocketed to a staggering ₹12,500 crore per month this financial year.
A recent report by MakeMyTrip highlights changing trends in Indian travel preferences. Covering June 2023 to May 2024, the report lists the top ten international destinations for Indian tourists, with Kazakhstan leading, followed by Azerbaijan and Bhutan. Surprisingly, traditional spots like the US and UK are absent. Interest in Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan surged by 491% and 404%, respectively.
Kazakhstan’s popularity has surged since it instituted a 14-day visa-free regime for Indian citizens in 2022, leading to a remarkable influx of visitors. Dastan Ryspekov, Chairman of the Kazakh Tourism Committee, reported that the flow of Indian tourists has ‘rocketed,’ with 28,300 Indian nationals visiting the country in 2023 alone.
The MakeMyTrip report attributes Kazakhstan’s appeal to improved connectivity, with direct flights available from New Delhi to Almaty—Kazakhstan’s largest city—taking just three hours. The rise of social media influencers promoting Kazakhstan as a travel destination has further fueled its popularity among Indian travellers.
