Sultanov B.K. Kazakhstan Today
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The Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies
under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan
KAZAKHSTAN TODAY
Almaty, 2010
3
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION..................................................................................13
Chapter 1. THE HISTORY OF KAZAKH STATEHOOD
1.1. Kazakhstan before the 15
th
Century .................................................23
1.2. Kazakh Khanate (15
th
-18
th
Centuries) ..............................................35
1.3. Kazakhstan in the Russian Empire ..................................................41
1.4. Kazakhstan in the USSR ..................................................................48
1.5. Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Kazakh SSR
and the Constitutional Law On State Independence
of the Republic of Kazakhstan .........................................................57
1.6. The Election of the First President
of the Republic of Kazakhstan (December 1991) ............................61
1.7. The First Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan of 1993 .......62
1.8. The Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan
of 30 August 1995 ............................................................................64
1.9. The National Referendum on Extending the Term
of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan ...............................66
1.10 The State Symbols of the Republic of Kazakhstan ..........................67
Chapter 2. DOMESTIC POLICY
2.1. Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev .........................................71
2.2. The Kazakhstan-2030 Strategy ........................................................77
2.3. The 2007 Constitutional Reform......................................................85
2.4. The Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan ...............................90
2.5. The Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan .............................95
2.6. Reforms in the Judicial System ...................................................... 105
2.7. The Party System ........................................................................... 108
2.8. Kazakhstan Is a Multiethnic State .................................................. 116
2.9. The Non-Governmental Sector ...................................................... 118
2.10. The Media ..................................................................................... 121
Chapter 3. FOREIGN POLICY
3.1. Kazakhstan’s Multi-Vector Foreign Policy .................................... 127
3.2. Kazakhstan’s Nuclear-Free Status ................................................. 137
3.3. Kazakhstan – the Chairman of the OSCE in 2010 ......................... 139
3.4. Kazakhstan and Russia .................................................................. 145
3.5. Kazakhstan and China .................................................................... 152
3.6. Kazakhstan’s Cooperation with Central Asian Countries .............. 157
UDK 323/324 (574)
BBК 66.3 (5 каз)
К 26
Scientifi c publication
Recommended for publication by the Scientifi c Council
of the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies
under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Edited by B.K. Sultanov
Editorial board:
B.K. Sultanov, L.M. Muzaparova, R.Yu. Vasilenko,
U.M. Nyssanbek, N.B. Seydin (responsible for publication)
Authors: M.A. Abisheva (ch(apter) 2; s(ection) 3.11), A.M. Borangaliyev (s. 4.6, 4.7, 4.12,
4.14), A.U. Ibragimova (s. 4.4, 4.13), R.Yu. Izimov (s. 3.5), K.D. Isayev (s. 3.8),
T.A. Kozyrev (ch. 2), S.K. Kushkumbayev (s. 3.6, 3.16), M.T. Laumulin (introduction),
S.S. Lukpanova (s. 3.3), A.A. Morozov (ch. 1, 2), A.K. Nazarbetova (s. 5.5),
M.Ye. Nurgaliyev (s. 3.7, 3.11, 3.12), A.Zh. Rakhimzhanova (s. 4.1, 4.3, 4.8, 4.9,
4.10, 4.11, appendices), G.G. Rakhmatulina (s. 3.15, 4.1., 4.2, 4.5, 4.15),
Ye.T. Seilekhanov (ch. 2, s. 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4), V.N. Sitenko (s. 3.13, 3.14),
B.K. Sultanov (s. 3.1, 3.2, 3.4), L.A. Timofeyenko (s. 3.9, 3.10)
Kazakhstan Today: monograph / Edited by B.K. Sultanov – Almaty:
The Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of the
Republic of Kazakhstan, 2010. – 356 p.
ISBN 978-601-7242-11-4
This joint monograph aims to present a generalised image of modern Kazakhstan.
The book focuses on Kazakhstan’s role in the international community and discusses
issues of the political, economic and social life of modern Kazakh society. It contains
the history of the country and information on its present administrative-territorial
divisions, population and government system.
The book presents Kazakhstan’s main steps on the path of the establishment
of statehood and interim results of the country’s development in its years of
independence.
The joint monograph targets primarily foreign readers who do not know much
about the Republic of Kazakhstan, and will be also useful to local political analysts,
researchers, civil servants, students and university teachers, and others.
К 26
© KazISS, 2010
UDК 323/324 (574)
BBК 66.3 (5 каз)
ISBN 978-601-7242-11-4
4 5
3.7. Kazakhstan and the USA ............................................................... 163
3.8. Kazakhstan and the EU .................................................................. 169
3.9. Kazakhstan and Middle Eastern Countries .................................... 177
3.10. Kazakhstan and South Asian Countries ........................................ 183
3.11. Kazakhstan and Asia-Pacifi c Countries ........................................ 188
3.12. Kazakhstan and the UN ................................................................ 195
3.13. Kazakhstan and the CIS ................................................................ 200
3.14. Kazakhstan and the SCO .............................................................. 205
3.15. Kazakhstan and the EAEC ............................................................ 210
3.16. Kazakhstan and the CICA ............................................................. 215
Chapter 4. KAZAKHSTAN’S ECONOMY
4.1. Strategy for Economic Reform ....................................................... 225
4.2. Kazakhstan’s Natural Resources ..................................................... 232
4.3. The Investment Climate in Kazakhstan .......................................... 237
4.4. Small and Medium Businesses ....................................................... 240
4.5. Oil and Gas Production and Transport ............................................ 243
4.6. Mining ............................................................................................. 249
4.7. Processing Industry ......................................................................... 252
4.8. Space Industry ................................................................................. 257
4.9. Agriculture ...................................................................................... 260
4.10. Trade ............................................................................................. 265
4.11. Banking ......................................................................................... 269
4.12. Transport ....................................................................................... 272
4.13. Communications ........................................................................... 276
4.14. Tourism ......................................................................................... 278
4.15. Foreign Economic Relations ......................................................... 281
Chapter 5. HUMAN DEVELOPMENT IN KAZAKHSTAN
5.1. Education ........................................................................................ 287
5.2. Science ............................................................................................ 298
5.3. Public Health ................................................................................... 306
5.4. Environment .................................................................................... 311
5.5. Gender Policy .................................................................................. 319
Appendices. KAZAKHSTAN in FIGURES ...................................... 323
Information about authors .................................................................. 352
Information about the KazISS ............................................................ 354
Kazakhstan today
FOREWORD
Dear Reader,
You are about to read this book about modern Kazakhstan, which
is the world’s ninth largest country and the second in the CIS after
Russia in terms of territory, and is one of the world’s richest countries
in terms of natural resources; it is considered to be the most stable of
the former Soviet states.
Our country has been attracting the world’s attention over the past
two decades with its successes in the creation of institutions of state-
hood, the implementation of market reforms in the economy and the
formation of a tolerant multi-denominational and multiethnic society.
Kazakhstan is famous for its contribution to the strengthening of
global stability and nuclear security, as an initiator and active player
in many processes in the sphere of disarmament, confi dence building
and the creation of a collective system of security.
This book refl ects our desire to tell the foreign reader more about
Kazakhstan – a country with an ancient culture and a long history, a
talented population and a stable economy. Located in the very centre
of the great Eurasian continent, Kazakhstan is a country in which
different and diverse phenomena have become intertwined and syn-
thesised. This country simultaneously belongs to both the East and
the West. Our country is populated by people that belong to different
ethnic groups and cultures.
In the fi rst chapter of this book you fi nd information on the his-
tory of Kazakhstan and the formation of Kazakh statehood. The
very history of the statehood of Kazakhs started in the 15
th
century,
although the history of Turkic nomads, who are the direct ancestors
of Kazakhstan, stretches for at least another millennium. This chapter
provides all the relevant information about the government system
of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the documents and symbols of
our country. Here you will learn the conditions in which modern
Kazakhstan was created when it received independence following
the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991.
6 7
Kazakhstan today
The second chapter of the book is devoted to the domestic political
processes in Kazakhstan, the country’s government system, the main
political forces and the nature of the political regime established in
the country. The book draws particular attention to the institution of
the presidency’s place and role in the government system. This at-
tention is understandable, given the fi rst Kazakh President Nursultan
Nazarbayev’s contribution to the process of building statehood and
his infl uence on it. In this chapter it is noted that Kazakhstan’s gov-
ernment institutions are not static in nature, rather they are always at
the stage of modernisation and reformation. This equally concerns
both political reforms in general and reforms in the parliamentary
and judicial systems.
The only solution in terms of strengthening the unitary nature
of Kazakhstan and preserving its political stability was a combina-
tion of the model of unitary state with strong presidential power. In
Kazakhstan, as in other liberal countries, political opposition exists.
The emergence of the opposition was largely a result of the economic
reforms conducted.
To me, as the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Re-
public of Kazakhstan, the most important is the third chapter, which
is devoted to the international standing and relations of Kazakhstan
with the rest of the world. In the almost 20-year period of its existence
as an independent state from the late 1991 to 2010 the Republic of
Kazakhstan joined the system of international relations, adopted its
foreign policy, drafted a clear and coherent foreign policy concept
and realised its national interests.
Kazakhstan’s foreign policy and involvement in the affairs of the
international community have developed rigorously in all key aspects
that have become traditional. This includes participation in interna-
tional and regional organisations (the UN, the EU, the Organisation for
Security and Cooperation in Europe, NATO, the Eurasian Economic
Community, the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO), the
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and the Organisation of the
Islamic Conference), development of bilateral relations (with Russia,
Central Asian and CIS countries, the USA, EU member states, China,
Muslim countries and Asia-Pacifi c states). Thus, Kazakhstan’s foreign
policy is based on three key directions: international law, multilateral
relations and bilateral relations.
At the initial stage of the development of Kazakhstan’s foreign
policy strategy (in the fi rst half of 1990s) the Eurasian Bridge concept
was put forward, which pointed out that in terms of geography, culture,
history and civilisation Kazakhstan belonged to both Europe and Asia.
Later, in the second half of the 1990s, this concept was transformed
into a doctrine of multi-vector diplomacy. This doctrine aimed to
pursue foreign policies in all directions important to Kazakhstan:
the CIS, Central Asia, East and West, Europe and Asia, the Muslim
world, Asia-Pacifi c, developed powers and so on.
During the implementation of foreign policy in different periods
Kazakhstan faced different priorities and objectives. For example,
between 1992 and 1995 nuclear problems occupied a signifi cant
place in Kazakhstan’s relations with the USA, Russia and the West
in general. In the second half of the 1990s the problem of the Cas-
pian Sea, its delimitation and the designing of routes to transport
Caspian hydrocarbons became a priority. At the beginning of the
21
st
century the issues of ensuring national and regional security,
fi ghting international terrorism, drugs and so on became particularly
relevant. During its entire history sovereign Kazakhstan’s foreign
policy aimed to expand integration in the post-Soviet space: within
the CIS, the Central Asian Economic Community and the Eurasian
Economic Community. Relations with Central Asian countries have
always been a priority for Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan has successfully entered the international community
and international structures at global, regional and subregional levels.
The country has joined most international treaties and agreements and,
as a result, became part of the international legal space. Kazakhstan is
party to international security treaties like the Treaty on the Non-Pro-
liferation of Nuclear Weapons, the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty
I, the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, as well as all the main documents
of the UN and the OSCE.
Kazakhstan, like all former Soviet republics, became member of
the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) on
30 January 1992. From the very fi rst days of its membership of this
8 9
Kazakhstan today
organisation Kazakhstan started actively promote the strengthening
of security in the CSCE/OSCE. As early as at the Helsinki summit
in 1992 President Nursultan Nazarbayev proposed the creation of
special forces under the CSCE for the prevention of regional confl icts
and maintaining peace in Eurasia. It was precisely then Kazakhstan
fl oated the idea of creating the Asian equivalent of the OSCE – the
Conference on Interaction and Confi dence-Building Measures in
Asia (CICA). Kazakhstan’s cooperation with the OSCE has been
important for strengthening its positions in the international arena
in general and relations with OSCE member states which represent
Eurasia, Europe and North America and boosting the security of
Kazakhstan and the entire Central Asian region, as well as develop-
ing democracy, ensuring human rights, pursuing balanced policy
on ethnic minorities and preserving internal stability. The OSCE
experience was also useful for convening the Conference on Interac-
tion and Confi dence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA), initiated by
Kazakhstan. In autumn 2007 at the Madrid meeting of the foreign
ministers of OSCE member states Kazakhstan was elected chairman
of the organisation in 2010, the duties of which our country started
performing on 1 January 2010.
As OSCE chairman Kazakhstan plans to focus on achieving the
best balance between all three baskets of the OSCE. This approach
will make it possible to see problems in their totality and effectively
withstand not only the external manifestations of modern challenges
and threats but also work with the sources of their origin. In addition,
Kazakhstan considers the expansion and strengthening of a consensual
fi eld on the fundamental issues of the organisation’s development as
one of the OSCE’s main tasks. In particular attention will be paid
to holding the OSCE summit in Astana in 2010, which will discuss
current security problems in the zone of responsibility of the OSCE,
the situation in Afghanistan and issues of tolerance.
Kazakhstan remains loyal to its role of initiator of integration
processes in the post-Soviet space. At the same time, Astana under-
stands that the maximum level of integration can take place only in
the economic sphere (and in the military-strategic sphere only in an
extraordinary case). Kazakhstan’s political sovereignty should be
preserved in any development of the situation. This means that Ka-
zakhstan aims to follow the European model of integration.
Russia is Kazakhstan’s main foreign policy partner. The two coun-
tries are co-founders of the CIS, the Eurasian Economic Community
and the Customs Union and are interacting within the CSTO and SCO,
as well as participating in multilateral talks on the legal status of the
Caspian Sea. Therefore, the multilateral nature of Kazakh-Russian
relations is very noticeable.
Relations between Kazakhstan and China, which is its second larg-
est neighbour, occupy an important place in Astana’s foreign policy.
They cover a broad range of issues in the political, economic, trade,
ethnic, border and military spheres. The Chinese factor is permanent
in Kazakhstan’s foreign policy. Between 1992 and 2010 the main
aspects of bilateral cooperation were fully defi ned. Problems that
represent mutual interests are borders, crossborder rivers, trade and
economic cooperation, the state of the Kazakh diaspora in Xinjiang
Uighur Autonomous Region, cooperation in the spheres of oil and
gas, transport and investment.
A positive moment in Kazakhstan’s ties with the USA was that
Washington practically recognised Kazakhstan as the leader (in
terms of reforms and economic development) in Central Asia and
to some extent in the CIS. Washington arrived at the conclusion that
Astana should assume the role of leader in the region which helps the
development of infrastructure in the energy sector and the creation
of additional transit routes for hydrocarbons. Kazakhstan was the
fi rst CIS country to be offi cially recognised by America as a market
economy country.
At the very beginning of the formation of independent Ka-
zakhstan’s foreign policy and foreign economic policy the country’s
leadership clearly realised that Western Europe and the EU institu-
tions were the political and economic force that must be taken into
account in the country’s foreign policy strategy. In 1992 the decision
was taken to launch cooperation between Kazakhstan and NATO.
Kazakhstan received additional security guarantees from NATO. On
27 May 1994 Kazakhstan signed the Partnership for Peace framework
document. We in Kazakhstan perfectly understand, especially in the
10 11
Kazakhstan today
context of the antiterrorist operation in Afghanistan, that the North
Atlantic Alliance is one of the most important guarantors of security
in Central Asia.
Kazakhstan’s multi-vector foreign policy was shaped by the
country’s pursuit of independent policy towards other power cen-
tres and regional powers in the second half of the 1990s. The latest
events have shown that Kazakhstan is indeed capable of conducting
an indeed multi-vector, yet also independent, policy at various inter-
national levels.
Relations between Kazakhstan and Russia, China, Central Asian
states, the USA and the EU are of strategic importance, which objec-
tively cannot be doubted. Kazakhstan’s future foreign policy, like in
the previous years, will aim at ensuring the security of the country and
the security of its population security, as well the economic progress
and sustainable development of the country.
The book’s fourth chapter discusses Kazakhstan’s economic de-
velopment. In recent years Kazakhstan is believed to be one of the
most economically successful countries in the CIS. Progress in eco-
nomic transformations in Kazakhstan is a shining example of those
diffi culties that have to be overcome on the path towards a market
economy by even a newly independent state that is the richest in
terms of natural resources.
The country’s economy has come a long way, accompanied by
a dramatic slump in production and high levels of infl ations at the
beginning and the stabilisation of the economy, a small economic
growth and a reduction in infl ation in the late 1990s, when Kazakhstan
completed a phase of macroeconomic stabilisation, the creation of its
fi nancial system and privatisation in the chief sectors of the economy.
Between then and the beginning of the global crisis the Kazakh
economy was on the rise.
Economic reforms resulted in serious socio-political changes in
the country. All this had a complex, but generally positive, effect. The
economic strategy placed emphasis on the macroeconomic stabilisa-
tion of the economy, the development of the fi nancial sector and the
banking system, the freeing-up of entrepreneurial vigour through
economic reforms and investment.
Even now, there are problems in Kazakhstan. At the local level
Kazakhstan has disproportions in terms of the size of the popula-
tion, its structure and development. Local differences in climatic
and geographical conditions in terms of demographic dynamics and
socioeconomic conditions led to the uneven distribution and density
of Kazakhstan’s population. There are great socioeconomic differ-
ences between the different regions of Kazakhstan. On the one hand,
there are regions with a predominantly rural population and with
agricultural and old industrial infrastructure; on the other, there are
regions with a high level of urban population, with deposits of natural
resources and competitive industry.
The fi nal chapter of the book discusses the human dimensions of
modern Kazakhstan – education, science, healthcare, environmental
protection and gender policy. Reforms, conducted by the Kazakh
government after 1991, had to touch these spheres of social life too. At
present, the higher education system is undergoing radical changes in
Kazakhstan. In this sphere we have signed international agreements,
including the Bologna Declaration.
When referring to education and training specialists we should
mention the Bolashak state programme, which occupied a remark-
able place in the Kazakh education system in the mid-1990s. The
programme is about preparing specialists for the country in the very
spheres where there are shortages and taking the best of everything
from foreign countries, while preserving young people’s attachment to
the motherland, patriotism and a sense of national responsibility. The
main strategic aim is to enable Kazakhstan to rely on its own resources,
including in the education system, in the decades to come.
As Kazakhstan’s fi rst President Nursultan Nazarbayev understands
the objective of modernising the country and its society, the task is
to move our independence from the outside world and the state of
the object to the conscious management of processes of borrowing
from external elements that help the modernisation of the political
and governmental systems, i.e. become subjects and creators of our
own modernisation.
So what is modern Kazakhstan? A country that is successfully
leaving behind the negative elements of its Soviet legacy, building
12 13
INTRODUCTION
Modern Kazakhstan covers a territory in the very heart of the Eur-
asian continent. It is a country where various and often contradictory
phenomena are entwined and synthesised; a country which at once
belongs to East and West as a link of the Eurasian civilisation that has
absorbed spiritual basics, ideas of humanism and the best traditions
of world cultures and religions.
Kazakhstan is located in the centre of Eurasia almost at an equal
distance from the Atlantic and the Pacifi c. In terms of size, the country
is the ninth largest in the world (2.7 million sq km), behind Russia,
Canada, China, the USA, Brazil, Australia, India and Argentina.
Its deep continental location signifi cantly infl uences the country’s
climatic conditions.
Kazakhstan today
an open and democratic society, which is liberal and secular in spirit.
Kazakhstan is now leaving the transitional stage with economic
reforms outpacing political ones. Facing various problems and dif-
fi culties, Kazakhstan and its political elite have learnt to solve them
and this should be recognised as the chief achievement of the post-
Soviet era.
From a political, legal and psychological point of view Ka-
zakhstan is a diverse society. Another inevitable objective faced by the
new Kazakh political elite is to consolidate society. In Kazakhstan’s
policy these priorities stand out: the construction of an effi cient state
which is capable of surviving in globalising international relations,
of leading economically in the region and of remaining loyal to its
Eurasian roots. Kazakhstan has everything to become a prosperous
democratic state: ethnic diversity, a vast territory, a diverse economy
and a well-educated population.
Kanat Saudabayev
Secretary of State of the Republic of Kazakhstan – Minister of
Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan
14 15
On Kazakhstan’s expanses one can fi nd mountains and plains,
wide and deep rivers and dry deserts. In its west lies the Caspian de-
pression, and, to its east, the Ustyurt Plateau, stretching to the shores
of the Aral Sea. The vast Turan lowland and the Kyzylkum desert
are in the country’s south which are replaced by the Moyunkum and
Betpak-Dala deserts further to the east. The plain is constrained by the
southern offsets of the Urals Mountains and the low-rise Mugalzhar
Mountains and the Turgai Valley. In the central part of the country
are the Kazakh Uplands and in the southeast are mountain ranges,
including Peak Khan Tengri (6,995 m).
Kazakhstan has a great number of lakes and rivers, and the Caspian
Sea coast stretches for 2,340 km the country’s west and southwest.
The Ural River that merges with the Ilek tributary and the Emba River
all fl ow into the Caspian Sea.
To the east of the Caspian Sea in the sand desert is the Aral Sea,
which not so long ago was the world’s fourth largest lake. In the
southeast is another big lake – Balkhash which covers an area of
18,200 sq km. Kazakhstan has almost 7,000 lakes, whose combined
water surface exceeds 45,000 sq km.
Remoteness from the oceans and the vast territory determine the
sharp continental nature of the country’s climate, its zoning and in-
suffi cient precipitation. Kazakhstan’s climate differs from adjacent
countries and from countries located on similar latitudes.
Despite Kazakhstan’s particular climate, on sunny days its southern
regions are not dissimilar to Egypt and California [1].
The average temperature in January ranges between -19 and -4
degrees Centigrade, while the average temperature in July fl uctuates
between +19 and +26 degrees Centigrade with varying considerably
between regions. Precipitation is also distributed unevenly: from less
than 100 mm per year in desert areas to 1,600 mm in the mountains.
Kazakhstan possesses sizeable reserves of mineral resources – oil,
gas, coal and metals. According to expert estimates, out of the 110 ele-
ments of the periodic table, 99 have been discovered in the country and
70 have been explored, while only 60 are actively being extracted.
Kazakhstan is a major producer of tungsten and occupies fi rst place
in terms of reserves, second place in terms of chromium and phos-
phorus ore reserves, fourth place on lead and molybdenum reserves
and eighth place on iron ore. The country also has major deposits of
iron, manganese and chromium ores, gold, barytes, potassium salts,
compounds of bromine, sulphates and phosphorites.
Kazakhstan is also rich in mineral, medicinal, industrial and ther-
mal water reserves.
Energy resources occupy a special place in the country. Fourteen
promising oil basins, located all over the country, have been discov-
ered, but so far only 160 oil and gas fi elds with combined reserves
of 2.7 billion tonnes have been explored.
The results of the latest explorations make it possible to suggest
that major oil fi elds developed in western Kazakhstan on the Caspian
Sea coast – Tengiz, Prorva, Kalamkas and Karazhanbas – are frag-
ments of a greater oil structure, the nucleus of which is located in the
northern part of the Caspian Sea. Its total reserves may reach as high
as 3-3.5 billion tonnes of oil and 2,000-2,500 billion cu m of gas.
The rich natural resources have encouraged industrial development
in the country. One of Kazakhstan’s major industrial enterprises is
the Sokolov-Sarbai Ore-enrichment Production Association, which
is one of the country’s leaders in iron ore production and processing.
Other fl agships of Kazakhstan’s industry include Mittal Steel Group,
a leading steel producer, and the Access Komir coal company.
The Kazmunaigas national oil and gas company is one of the
largest companies in the country and is involved in drafting and
implementing the single state policy and strategy in the oil and gas
sphere. Kazmunaigas conducts the full cycle of work in this sphere:
it explores, develops, extracts, processes, transports and sells hydro-
carbons as well as building and operating oil and gas pipelines and
production facilities in Kazakhstan and abroad [2].
Thus, the country’s advantageous geopolitical location, its vast
territory and natural resources, political and economic stability ob-
jectively determine Kazakhstan’s fi rm positions in the Central Asian
region. Its relations with the European Union and chairmanship of
the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe in 2010
are important in order for Kazakhstan to advance its interests in the
global geopolitical system.
Kazakhstan today
16 17
Despite the diverse natural and other conditions that exist in any
modern country, its real integrity and political, economic and social
stability are maintained by a clearly functioning system of coopera-
tion between all of its regions.
Kazakhstan now has 14 regions and two cities of national impor-
tance.
North Kazakhstan Oblast borders the Russian Federation. Its ad-
ministrative centre is Petropavlovsk. The region’s main production
spheres are the processing of agricultural products which accounts for
35.4% of total output, power engineering with 31.5% and machine-
building and metal processing with 23%.
Pavlodar Oblast is located in the country’s north and borders
the Russian Federation. The region has well-developed power engi-
neering, metal and oil refi ning sectors. Grain production and animal
husbandry dominate in the agricultural sector.
Kostanai Oblast is also located in northern Kazakhstan and borders
Russia. Its iron ore extraction and food industry are well-developed.
Grain production and meat and dairy production are the main seg-
ments of its agriculture.
Akmola Oblast is another northern region, traditionally strong in
agriculture, especially well-known for the quality of its grain.
Karaganda Oblast is Kazakhstan’s largest region, which is located
in the country’s centre. Its main city is Karaganda. The region has well-
developed energy, coal, ferrous and non-ferrous metal, chemical and
food industries. Grain and meat production dominate its agriculture.
Aktobe Oblast is situated on the border of the two continents – Asia
and Europe. The region is located in the country’s west and borders
the Russian Federation and Uzbekistan; its administrative centre is
Aktobe. It has a unique mineral resources base and occupies fi rst place
in the world in terms of chromite ore, third place in Kazakhstan in
copper ore and oil reserves and forth place in the country in terms of
gas reserves. Ore-enrichment, chemical, food and machine-building
sectors are well-developed.
Atyrau Oblast is in the country’s west and borders Russia. Its
capital is Atyrau. The main mineral resources are oil and gas, potas-
sium salts; manganese, barium, calcium, bromine, cooking salt, lime
and clay. Oil production, oil refi ning, petrochemistry, fi shing and fi sh
products, and the cultivation of melons, watermelons and pumpkins
are major sectors of its economy.
West Kazakhstan Oblast borders Russia. The region’s capital is
Uralsk. Gas production, machine-building, the food industry and grain
and potato production are well-developed.
Mangistau Oblast borders Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The ad-
ministrative centre of the region is Aktau. The main mineral resources
are oil and gas. The oil and gas sector is a key sector in the region.
Aktau also has a port on the Caspian Sea.
South Kazakhstan Oblast is one of the largest regions in the coun-
try. Located in the south, it borders with Uzbekistan and its capital
is Shymkent. Non-ferrous metallurgy, machine-building, the food
industry and cotton production are developed well in the country. In
addition, the region has plenty of mineral resources.
Kyzylorda Oblast is also located in southern Kazakhstan. The region
has the Aral Sea, which is an environmental disaster zone. The region
extracts oil and cooking salt and cultivates rice. The region is home
to the world-famous Baikonur space launching site which enjoys a
special status and is practically run jointly by Kazakhstan and Russia
(in accordance with an agreement signed on 25 March 1994) [3].
Zhambyl Oblast is in the country’s south and borders Kyrgyzstan. Its
capital, Taraz, is an ancient Silk Road town, which has marked its 2000
th
anniversary. The region is famous for one of the world’s major deposits
of phosphorites. The Amangeldy gas fi eld has been put into operation
and will satisfy demand for gas in the entire south of the country. Animal
husbandry and crop farming are well-developed in this region.
East Kazakhstan Oblast borders Russia and China. Its administra-
tive centre is Ust-Kamenogorsk. Most of its territory covers the Altai
Mountains (the highest peak is over 4,000 metres). The Irtysh River
fl ows through the region. Non-ferrous metallurgy, machine-building,
power engineering, the timber industry, the food sector and meat and
dairy production are key sectors in this region.
Almaty Oblast is situated in Kazakhstan’s southeast and borders
Kyrgyzstan and China. Taldykorgan is the region’s capital. The key
economic sectors are power engineering, metal processing, produc-
Kazakhstan today
18 19
tion of equipment and instruments and the light and food industries.
The strongest agricultural segments are grain, beetroot and potato
production, the wine industry and tobacco cultivation.
The city of Almaty was Kazakhstan’s capital from 1929 until 1997.
Its population was 1,130,100 people at the beginning of 1998, and
this fi gure now stands at around 1.5 million.
The city is located on the northern foothills of the Ile (Zailiyskiy)
Alatau Mountains between the Ulken Almaty River and Kishi Almaty
River. The city’s northernmost point is at an altitude of 670 metres
above the sea level and the southernmost at 970 metres. The city
covers an area of 287.6 sq km.
Almaty has the status of a city of national signifi cance. It is the larg-
est fi nancial, scientifi c, education, cultural and tourism centre of the
country. The city’s many research establishments conduct studies practi-
cally in all spheres of science and they are united under the umbrella of
the National Academy of Sciences, which was set up in 1946.
The city is home to 75% of the country’s commercial banks and a
majority of private pension funds and this determines its role as the
country’s fi nancial centre.
Almaty, as a fi nancial, scientifi c and cultural centre, has high in-
vestment attractiveness and fulfi ls some of the functions of a capital
city, acquiring the image of international business centre. It is the
country’s largest transport hub.
Astana is the capital of Kazakhstan. President Nursultan Nazar-
bayev initiated to move capital from Almaty to Akmola and this
decision was passed by the Supreme Soviet of Kazakhstan on 6 July
1994. On 20 October 1997, by a presidential decree Akmola (it was
renamed Astana in 1998) was announced as the capital of the Re-
public of Kazakhstan, and Astana is now the centre of the country’s
economic, political and cultural life.
The Kazakh settlement of Karaotkel was located on the site of
modern Astana and it was on the northern branch of the Great Silk
Road which linked Europe and Asia. In 1832, a military fortifi cation
was founded in the settlement and it swiftly turned into a major trade
centre. The town changed names several times – it was called Akmo-
linsk until 1961, Tselinograd in 1961-1992 and the previous name in
the Kazakh spelling of Akmola was returned to the city from 1992
until 1998 and it received the new name, Astana, on 6 May 1998. By
2008, the capital’s population had already exceeded 600,000.
The capital now has 20 twin cities – Moscow, Minsk, Kiev,
Chisinau, Tashkent, Riga, Tbilisi, Baku, Cairo, Islamabad, Berlin,
Budapest, Warsaw, Vilnius, Ankara, Gdansk, Dubai, Bangkok, Seoul
and Amman. Astana became a member of the International Assembly
of Capitals and Cities in 2000.
The pace and wide range of transformations that are taking place
in Astana have not gone unnoticed by the international community.
UNESCO awarded Astana with the title and medal City of Peace in
1999. The new capital of sovereign Kazakhstan – Astana – is becom-
ing an increasingly important political, socioeconomic and cultural
centre of not only Kazakhstan but also of Central Asia and Eurasia.
Now claiming a broad reputation as a rapidly developing city, As-
tana is generating professional interest among politicians, political
scientists and sociologists.
As one of the world’s largest nations, Kazakhstan has a relatively
small population – its population density is 6.1 people per square
kilometre. The country’s population is 16.4 million people (2009),
and life expectancy is 66.5 years.
In the past two decades population growth has slowed in Kazakhstan.
This is explained by, on the one hand, emigration of signifi cant part
of the population, and, on the other hand, a steady reduction in natural
growth. However, emigration rates gradually slowed, while natural
growth increased. From 2002 natural growth has outpaced a negative
migration balance, and since 2004 Kazakhstan’s population has started
growing as a result of natural growth and inward migration.
In 1992 the government began encouraging ethnic Kazakhs who
were living abroad to return to Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan’s population is multiethnic: there are 131 ethnic groups
in the country. According to 2007 statistics, ethnic Kazakhs account
for 59.18% of the population, ethnic Russians 25.63% and other ethnic
groups total 15.19% [15, p 44]. Current and more precise data will be
obtained from the results of the census held in the country between
25 February and 6 March 2009.
Kazakhstan today