On January 10, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) handed over $1.4 million worth of modern energy sector management equipment and software to the Coordinating Dispatch Center (CDC) Energia in Tashkent. The official handover ceremony showcased cutting-edge technology which will allow CDC Energia’s dispatchers to display relevant information for maintaining the region’s energy
The Consul General of Kazakhstan in Jeddah – Deputy Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Ruslan Kospanov on January 9 visited the headquarters of the International Union of Muslim Scouts (IUMS). During the visit, the Consul General met with the IUMS Secretary General Dr. Zuhair Ghoneim, who informed about the activities carried
A new city, Alatau, has been created in Kazakhstan in line with a presidential decree dated January 9. According to the decree, the village of Zhetygen, Ili district, Almaty region, has been classified as a city of regional significance and renamed to the city of Alatau. The new city is located 15 km from Almaty and
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, from January to September 2023, 834.9 thousand foreign tourists visited Kazakhstan, 225 thousand more than in 2022 (an increase of 37%). In the first nine months of 2023, the majority of travelers visited Kazakhstan from Russia — 356,850. Chinese tourists took second place — 75,131, followed by tourists
An event in Bishkek marked the conclusion of the biodiversity conservation project in Western Tian Shan and launched a new initiative for integrated management of the valuable mountain ecosystems of Pamir-Alai. The event brought together representatives from Kyrgyzstan’s Ministry of Natural Resources, Ecology, and Technical Supervision, the Ministry of Agriculture, the National Academy of Sciences,
A leader of the Karakalpak diaspora in Kazakhstan, Nietbai Urazbaev, who was sentenced to 12 years in prison in absentia in Uzbekistan over unprecedented Karakalpak protests in July 2022, has died in a hospital in Kazakhstan’s largest city, Almaty, RFE/RL’s Kazakh Service reported. Karakalpak activist Aqylbek Muratbai said on January 9 that Urazbaev died of a heart
Trade between Afghanistan and Uzbekistan amounted to $266 million in 2023, compared to $44 million in 2022, Afghan broadcaster TOLOnews reported with reference to the Afghan Ministry of Industry and Commerce. Afghanistan’s exports to Uzbekistan totaled $27 million in the past year and imports from Uzbekistan amounted to $239 million, the ministry’s spokesman said. Afghanistan
A groundbreaking cooperative agreement seeking to improve working conditions and prevent forced labor was signed this week for workers, “at all stages of cotton and textile production in Uzbekistan”. Agreement signatories include U.S.-based Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), employers’ Association of Cotton-Textile Clusters of Uzbekistan, the Solidarity Center, and the Uzbekistan Ministry of Employment,
Hundreds of oil workers in the western region of Manghystau, who have been on strike for 29 days, issued a video statement on January 8, urging Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to intervene in their situation, RFE/RL’s Kazakh Service reported. The workers of the West Oil Software company went on strike on December 11, demanding the
The inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) into Kyrgyzstan from January-September 2023 compared to the same period in 2022 decreased by 31.7% and amounted to 654.6 million US dollars. At the same time, the inflow exceeded the outflow level by $404.4 million, according to the latest figures from the National Statistics Committee of Kyrgyzstan. From
Kazakhstan is at a crossroads in its energy sector. With a growing emphasis on sustainability and a need to align with global decarbonization efforts, the country is embarking on a transformative initiative that aims to ensure the security and reliability of its energy supply. At the heart of this endeavor is a comprehensive energy subsidy
On January 6, a presentation of the first book of the President of Turkmenistan, Serdar Berdimuhamedov, entitled “Youth is the support of the Motherland,” took place at the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan. The Minister of Foreign Affairs Rashid Meredov and other distinguished guests spoke at the event.
A court in Kyrgyzstan has sentenced another Kyrgyz citizen to a prison term for his participation in Russia’s war against Ukraine. The Naryn regional court sentenced Beknazar Borugul uulu to five years in prison for participating in the war in Ukraine as part of the Russian private military company Wagner. The court announced on January
The suspension of broadcasting of some Russian TV channels in Kazakhstan, including Channel One, is due to economic reasons, as the contract for 2024 was not concluded due to the local TV operator’s debt, the official representative of Channel One. Worldwide Network in Kazakhstan, Irina Kalashnikova said, as reported by TASS information agency on January
Eccentric Kyrgyz opposition politician Arstanbek Abdyldaev has died while in a pretrial detention facility. Abdyldaev’s lawyer announced the news on January 5, after which prison authorities said Abdyldaev was found hanged in a jail cell. The State Penitentiary Service later said that Arstanbek Abdyldaev committed suicide. Abdyldaev was detained on December 15 on suspicion of
The tariff for water for the population has increased by 100% in Turkmenistan. Residents of the capital and regions learned about this when paying for utilities. The country’s authorities did not notify the population about the tariff increase, which caused fears among the population that other services, including electricity, may also become more expensive, Radio
The chairman of a farm in the Tajik district of Dosti was sentenced to five years in prison for “cooperating” with Islah TV, a website close to the government opposition, RFE/RL’s Tajik Service reported. The Khatlon Regional Court on January 4 handed down the sentence to 60-year-old Mahmudjon Bobomurodov after finding him guilty of watching
A 38-year-old social media user who accused Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of supporting Russia’s war against Ukraine has been sentenced to 5 years and 1 month in prison, RFE/RL’s Uzbek Service reported. The Kattakurgan District Court in the Samarkand region of Uzbekistan handed down the sentence on January 4 to Bunyodjon Boboniyozov, for “insulting or
Kazakh television operator TVCOM says it has stopped broadcasting several stations launched by Russian state-run Channel One in a move to reduce the share of foreign news channels on the local market, RFE/RL’s Kazakh Service reported on January 4. TVCOM said the move was also due to the fact that its subscribers are “more media
At the beginning of 2023, a preferential leasing mechanism for the renewal of city buses was launched in the regions of Kazakhstan through the Industrial Development Fund. As a result, 2.5 thousand vehicles were supplied to bus fleets, including 774 environmentally friendly buses, the Kazakh Transport Ministry said. Also, during the past year, all regions
