More than 120 passengers went on a trip on the tourist train Jibek Joly on April 30. The tourist train was organized by Kazakhstan Temir Zholy, the country’s national railway company, with the assistance of Uzbekistan Railways, the Tourism Committee and the Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan, and Kazakh Tourism. The trip allows tourists to
The inaugural dialogue of participants in the Export Accelerator Program—implemented by the Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade of Uzbekistan—was held in Tashkent on May 2. Launched in September 2024, the Export Accelerator has already facilitated the entry of 29 entrepreneurs into international markets. To date, these participants have achieved export deliveries totaling over $14
The 11th meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation between Kazakhstan and the United Kingdom was held in London last week. The Kazakh delegation was led by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Alibek Kuantyrov. The meeting was attended by the Ambassador of Kazakhstan to the UK Magzhan Ilyassov, UK Ambassador to Kazakhstan
On May 1, a grand opening ceremony was held in Khiva for the Arda Khiva International Tourist Center. The new complex is home to 17 hotels and guesthouses, 9 restaurants, open-air and indoor aqua parks, a 3,000-seat amphitheater, 5 cinemas and concert halls, exhibition pavilions, 70 retail stores, 300 market stalls, 11 artisan houses, an
Kazakhstan is taking another step toward fostering international business. At the initiative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan new regulations have been approved for obtaining an investor visa, aimed at enhancing the country’s investment appeal and supporting long-term business partnerships. Under the new framework, foreign nationals who invest a minimum of 300,000 US
On April 30, the U.S. government deported over 100 Uzbekistani, Kazakhstani, and Kyrgyzstani citizens present illegally in the United States on a charter flight organized by Uzbekistan’s government, the U.S. Embassy in Uzbekistan said. This operation, the first in which a U.S. partner proactively provided a dedicated flight to repatriate its citizens, exemplifies the productive
The UN General Assembly in New York has adopted the resolution initiated by Uzbekistan titled “Decade of Action on Afforestation and Reforestation in Accordance with Sustainable Forest Management”. The resolution was co-sponsored by over 80 countries representing all regions of the world, including Central Asian countries, Azerbaijan, Russia, Brazil, Austria, Germany, Finland, Portugal, India, Iran,
This year, Kazakhstan begins planting new orchards of aport apple trees in the Almaty region, the Ministry of Agriculture has announced. Aport is the legendary Kazakh apple variety, distinguished by its large size, distinct smell, and succulent nature. The new orchards are part of a national program to revive aport, implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture
On April 30 in London, the Ambassador of the Kyrgyz Republic to the United Kingdom, Ulan Djusupov, held a meeting with Lord John Alderdice, the UK Trade Envoy to Azerbaijan and Central Asia. During the meeting, the parties discussed prospects for expanding Kyrgyz–UK trade, economic, and investment cooperation. Ambassador Djusupov briefed the Trade Envoy on
The Delegation of the European Union to Uzbekistan on April 28 launched five new civil society projects under its “EU Support to Civil Society Organisations in Uzbekistan” initiative at the event in Tashkent. With a combined value of nearly EUR 2.9 million — co-funded by the EU and its partner organisations — the new initiatives
Austria’s AVL List GmbH, a world leader in automotive technology development and testing, will participate in a project to establish a national testing and certification center for motor vehicles in Kazakhstan. A memorandum of understanding for the project has been signed between AVL List GmbH, Kazakh engineering firm LLP IAS, and Kazakh Invest national investment
The U.S. Embassy-funded 2025 Next Generation Education teacher training program (NextGenEd), which trains over a thousand teachers annually throughout Kyrgyzstan, started this month. The program implementer, Lingua Foundation for Innovative Education, celebrated the start of the program with an event on April 29 in Bishkek hosted by Arabaev State University, with remarks by representatives of
On April 28, the plenary session of the fifth exhibition “INNOPROM. Central Asia – 2025” was held in Tashkent. INNOPROM. Central Asia is an annual international industrial exhibition held in the capital of Uzbekistan since 2021. “INNOPROM. Central Asia – 2025” covers an area of 18,000 square meters, with 4,143 square meters dedicated to Uzbekistan’s
On April 28, Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu and Stefano Manfredi, General Director of the Spanish company TUBACEX IBF Kazakhstan discussed the establishment in Kazakhstan of the first seamless pipe plant in Central Asia, producing pipes from stainless steel and nickel alloys. The project aligns with Kazakhstan’s strategic
Kyrgyzstan will supply over 600 million cubic meters of water to Kazakhstan during this year’s irrigation season. This was agreed upon at the 35th meeting of the Kazakh-Kyrgyz Commission on the Use of Interstate Water Management Facilities of the transboundary Shu and Talas rivers, which flow from Kyrgyzstan. According to the Kazakh Ministry of Water
The 6th meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Central Asia–China format was held in Almaty on April 26, attended by the foreign ministers of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu, China Wang Yi, Kyrgyzstan Zheenbek Kulubaev, Tajikistan Sirojiddin Mukhriddin, Uzbekistan Bakhtiyor Saidov, and a representative of Turkmenistan. The meeting focused on strengthening political dialog, expanding trade and economic
The 4th meeting of the Uzbek-Chinese Working Group on Investment Cooperation was held in Tashkent on April 24. The meeting reviewed progress made in the investment sector. It was noted that the total volume of bilateral investments exceeded USD 10 billion in 2024, marking a 2.5-fold increase compared to 2023. Key discussion areas included: Strengthening investment and financial
Kazakhstan has secured its participation in the construction of a new railway line running from the Turkmenistan border through Afghanistan to the Pakistan border via the Turgundi – Herat – Kandahar – Spin-Boldak route. A protocol of intent was signed last week between Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Trade and Integration and Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Works
In Astana, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Kazakh Invest national company, Madiyar Sultanbek met with representatives of Croatian company Sinitech Industries, Swedish company Ecolean, Kazakhstan’s AGRO HOLDING BAYAN, and the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR). According to Kazakh Invest, the parties discussed a project to build a powdered milk plant using innovative mineralization technology tailored to the needs
Kyrgyzstandart, the national standardization body under the Ministry of Economy and Commerce, has officially been accredited to certify food safety management systems in line with ISO 22000:2019. This accreditation positions Kyrgyzstan to independently certify food enterprises and reduce reliance on foreign institutions—lowering certification costs and helping producers enter international markets faster, the United Nations Development
