In 2026, Kazakhstan plans to begin officially exporting the antlers of saiga antelopes for the first time in its history. The initial shipment is expected to total 20 tons, potentially generating tens of millions of dollars on Asian markets. The decision appears both logical and controversial. On one hand, the...
President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev began receiving congratulations from foreign leaders on March 16 after Kazakhstan announced that voters had approved a new constitution in a nationwide referendum. As reported by The Times of Central Asia, turnout reached 73.12%, with 87.15% of voters supporting the proposed amendments. The March 15 referendum backed...
With its public opening scheduled for March 17, 2026, the Islamic Civilization Center in Tashkent is emerging as one of the most consequential cultural projects in contemporary Uzbekistan. Conceived under President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s initiative first announced in 2017, the Center presents itself not simply as a museum but as a...
Kazakh president says the format offers a new blend of diplomacy and business that could help ordinary people, particularly in Gaza In remarks released by Aqorda, Kazakhstan’s presidential press office, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said Kazakhstan will continue to support the “Board of Peace” initiative, describing it as an innovative diplomatic...
The 2026 Global Internet Freedom Rankings, published this week by the research agency Cloudwards, have revealed that the five countries of Central Asia have significantly less internet censorship than all of their Eurasian neighbors. Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan’s online environments emerge as particularly encouraging cases. Cloudwards defines internet censorship as the...
In mid-February, Gurbanguly Berdymuhamedov, former president of Turkmenistan and current chairman of the Halk Maslahaty (the People's Council of Turkmenistan), visited the United States. State media reported extensively on the trip, although some details of the visit and its outcomes were not publicly clarified. Shortly after Berdymuhamedov’s return, President Serdar...
Private recruitment agencies that arrange overseas employment for Kyrgyz citizens contributed about $230,000 in tax payments to the state budget last year, according to data published on the Open Budget portal. At the same time, some migrants say that working conditions abroad do not always match the promises made by...
Kazakhstan’s authorities have acknowledged a significant discrepancy between official estimates of informal employment and administrative data, highlighting the scale of the country’s shadow labor market. Minister of Labor and Social Protection Askarbek Yertaev said the actual number of people working outside the formal economy could be almost three times higher...